Davin, I did a little

Davin, I did a little research and decided early on not to install them.  The house had gutter guards when we moved in but that didn’t stop them from filling up with dirt.  Trees were even growing out of one of the gutters.  I know some people swear by them, but they just seem like too much trouble to me.  If I had a steep roof and trees hanging right over it, I may have come to a different conclusion, but we don’t so it won’t be too hard to clean them out a couple times a year.

Do you worry about
Do you worry about ventilation between the brick and sheathing, especially with gypsum “sheathing”? I know of builders that still use soffit venting along with the weep holes at the bottom of the brick to keep that air space ventilated and dry. It makes sense to me.

My other issue is long-term maintenance, and this is even before “resilience” was an issue. I like brick because it never needs painting, and the same for aluminum soffit. Cement board is better than wood, but still needs periodic painting and caulking.

Ironically, the latest trend where I live is to build new houses with brick, and then paint the brick white. Why would anyone do something so stupid?

Aluminum?  I hadn’t even

Aluminum?  I hadn’t even considered that, RoyC.  The mention of aluminum siding always reminds me of the movie Tin Men, in which Richard Dreyfuss and Danny Devito play dueling door-to-door aluminum siding salesmen in 1960s Baltimore.  (Or was it ’50s Baltimore?)  The only place I need venting is at the garage.  The rest of the house has an encapsulated attic.

Why not aluminum soffit and
Why not aluminum soffit and facia? Wouldn’t it at least be better in terms of providing good venting?

RoyC, I went with fiber

RoyC, I went with fiber-cement.  It added only 5% to the cost and I like it for its durability and its carpenter bee resistance.

Richard, that would add a lot

Richard, that would add a lot of extra work and cost if spray foam installers removed and replaced the fascia on every job.  It would also mean removing and replacing the gutters and maybe doing some painting afterwards.  And SPF contractors don’t usually have the tools for that kind of job.  But a smart homeowner could certainly coordinate all that.