An Evaluation of China’s Land Policy and Urban Housing Markets

In this paper, Joyce Y. Man examines the evolution of Chinese housing policies and the growth of the Chinese housing market since the reforms of 1998, when the Chinese government ended its socialistic system of housing provision and introduced private housing markets. This sparked a long period of rapid real estate development and urban growth. Separation of land ownership and use rights facilitated the rapid development of Chinese land markets, increasing home ownership, and fast-paced urban growth. Man examines the evolution of Chinese housing policies and the growth of the Chinese housing market since the reforms. Throughout this period, Chinese cities have increasingly relied on land leasing fees as a primary source of revenue. In recent years, however, growing demand for housing and more sophisticated housing markets have capitalized land leasing fees into housing prices, reducing the availability of affordable housing. Man argues that municipal reliance on land leasing fees must be reduced in favor of a new property tax system in order to help stabilize the market and ensure access to affordable housing in Chinese cities.

This paper was presented at the Lincoln Institute’s annual Land Policy Conference in 2014 and is Chapter 9 of the book Land and the City.