Job and home dilemma: housing pathways of urban migrants in China

ABSTRACT China’s rapid industrialization and urbanization have been accompanied by massive internal population migration over the past decades. These immigrants experience various housing disadvantages along their migration journeys. Using longitudinal survey datasets from China Family Panel Studies, this paper identifies the housing pathways adopted by the Chinese urban migrants, including moving into homeownership, moving out of homeownership, and non-homeownership mobility. Job changes and institutional forces are the most significant mobility triggers, while family life cycle events are vital predictors of moving into homeownership. The dilemma of job-induced migration versus family-centred homeownership attainment has resulted in various social issues. This paper suggests that policies should be systematically designed for industry convergence from an overall urban planning perspective to promote township urbanization, including industrial relocation, rural economic revitalization, and institutional reforms of rural-urban disparities.