The preference for a house or flat/apartment can vary a lot from country to country. For example, British people usually dislike flats and show a strong preferrence for (detached) houses. There is even a hierarchy in housing from detached house at the top, then semi-detached house (sharing one wall with another house), terraced house (sharing a wall with a house one each side), and, at the bottom, the flat. In Japan, many people now seem to like modern "mansion" (flats/apartments), and the higher the better.

This can easily be explained by the strong individualism of British people, who not only want to own their land, but care a lot about their privacy, have their own little garden and being able to change everything you want in your house without other people's consent (something you can't do in a flat).

The Japanese are known for their collectivism, which bring them a stronger sense or protection and community. They like high buildings because "light" is usually a determinant factor for them, rather than privacy or even land.

Contrarily to the Brits, if some Japanese say they want their own land, it is usually only as a financial security in case of earthquake, not a strong desire to own a part of the country which they can call their private possession where no one else can stand without their permission.

Another advantage of flats over houses is that we don't need to always go upstairs and downstairs (although bungalow houses like in Australia can achieve the same).

Personally, I dislike flats/apartments and have a strong preference for detached houses. So much that even a semi-detached house is just as bad as a flat.

What about you ? Imagine that you live in a town/city where there are as many houses than flats (a bit like in Tokyo).