Public Housing Programs and the Challenge of Household Affordability in Beijing

As China’s political, economic and cultural center, Beijing is a strong magnet for both population and industry. Due to rapid industrialization and urbanization, the city’s population has reached 20.2 million as of 2011 (Statistical Bureau of Beijing 2012), and built-up urban areas have grown to 1,425.9 km2 in 2011 (NBSC 2012). In addition, there have been massive urban renewals, shantytown rebuilding and new town development. The increased demand for housing has resulted in higher housing prices, and corresponding higher housing prices have grown in Beijing at a rate faster than the national average. The average price for commodity housing in Beijing increased 2.6 times from 2001 to 2009, while disposable income per capita increased only 2.4 times during the same period (NBSC 2000). This has created problems of low housing affordability and poor housing consumption, especially among low- and middle- income households. Severe housing problems are increasingly threatening economic stability in Beijing (Yang and Shen 2008; Yang and Wang 2011) and also widening social stratification between different cohorts (Yang and Wang 2011; Man 2011).