Siding Options

The existing siding on the house is a shingle style.  It may be original to the house (1938).  It needs to be replaced.  So, we need to explore our options. I like the look of wood clapboard siding.  It seems traditional and fitting with the style that we're trying to go with.  But, neither Mike nor I are keen on repainting the house on a frequent basis.  Or dealing with rot if the wood isn't painted and sealed properly.  So, another option would be vinyl, but we don't want to deal with it becoming brittle and breaking.  Aluminum siding can get dented, a big consideration in our area (with hailstorms.)  My first choice, at this point, would be cement fiber siding.  It doesn't rot and can be prefinished.  I just did a bit of research and found that there is also steel siding.  I don't know much about that yet.  I'm looking forward to discussing this with our architect/builder team.