Do people from northern states not realize that a good chunk of the US population doesn’t have to deal with cars that “rust out”?

Genuine question. I have never lived in the north. I was in my 20’s before I ever knew that rust could be a major problem with cars. It wasn’t until I worked with an older man from Maine who told me “Within three years cars start to rust, in five years you just throw them away”. Even though he was correct, I found this almost impossible to believe at the time. I drive two cars well over ten years old, zero rust. As with any car around here. I now know this can certainly be an issue, but the amount of times I’ve heard people say “make sure it’s not rusted out” is in nearly every post here. Do people here know that this isn’t a problem for a ton of people?