Southern climates allow the builders to skip a lot of expenses, and call
it
standard practice, which keeps more money in their

Lousy thinking. The builder who spends an extra $10,000 to fight with
jack
hammers and explosives to build a basement may not get that extra $10,000
in selling price. Only an idiot will spend $10,000 to get back $3,000.
Send me your $10,000 and I will give you $3,000 for it.

You are very opinionated and don't seem to think very deeply. Yes, solid
rock may be a major deterent, but hard pan clay and other soils should not.
In this region, houses without a basement have problems selling. That extra
$10,000.00 can double your square footage, great for hobbies, storage and
other uses. The cost per square foot is quite small. Only your idiot would
be too cheap to turn down doubling your square footage for a small price.