Owning housing units versus owning the residence: The divergence between two types of homeownership rates in urban China since 2008.

Urban housing is crucial for understanding socioeconomic inequality in transitional economies. In China, since the massive housing privatization, there has been a significant improvement in various aspects of urban housing. Official data and research articles report a substantial increase in urban homeownership rates. However, prevailing studies and media reports also reveal the growing difficulty for young people to attain homeownership. Hence, it is unclear whether it has become easier or harder for Chinese urban residents to become homeowners, and why. We propose differentiating between two types of homeownership: (1) ownership of an urban housing unit (broadly-defined homeownership), and (2) ownership of the housing unit in which one currently lives (narrowly-defined homeownership). The trends of these two types of homeownership rates have diverged since 2008. While the former rose because housing units were increasingly viewed as investment goods, the latter declined, which suggests that for new entrants into the housing market, it has become harder to own their residences. We draw on six waves of the Chinese General Social Survey (CGSS) between 2003 and 2018 for our empirical investigation. The findings substantiate our propositions. They reveal that young people's disadvantage is more salient in living in self-owned housing units than owning a housing unit , and this disadvantage has grown significantly since 2008. This study contributes to the emerging literature on housing inequality in transitional economies, particularly the housing disadvantages among young adults. • Two homeownership rates: broadly-defined (owning any unit) and narrowly-defined (owning current residence) • Divergence between two rates in urban China post-2008: broad rates up, narrow rates down • High prices, slower income, restrictions made it harder to own current residence • Housing increasingly seen as investment, not home, disproportionately affecting new entrants • Differentiating the two rates is crucial for accurately studying housing inequality [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]