Influential Factors and Geographical Differences in the Redevelopment Willingness of Urban Villagers: A Case Study of Guangzhou, China

Lizheng Zhang,Jiejing Wang,Yumin Ye

doi:10.3390/land11020233

Abstract

As a crucial part of China’s development strategy, the redevelopment of urban villages and the redevelopment willingness of villagers have attracted considerable scholarly interest. However, the literature to date has neglected the effect of the geographical location of urban villages on the redevelopment willingness of villagers. The purpose of this study is to examine the influential factors of the redevelopment willingness of urban villagers, especially with regard to geographical differences and their effects. Based on prospect theory and 1083 questionnaires administered in 45 selected urban villages in Guangzhou, we use the ordinal logistic regression model to explore the influential factors behind villagers’ redevelopment willingness in inner villages (<15 km from the city center), urban fringe villages (15–40 km from the city center), and suburban villages (>40 km from the city center). The results show that in inner villages the confirmation of residential land rights can significantly increase redevelopment willingness, but in urban fringe villages the number of stories in dwelling houses significantly decreases the willingness. Further, a high level of villagers’ trust in the government, market enterprises, and the village collective each has a significant positive impact on the redevelopment willingness of villagers in urban fringe villages. However, only trust in the government and market enterprises have significant positive impacts on redevelopment willingness in the inner villages and only trust in the village collective is significant in this regard in suburban villages. The effects of geographical differences imply that China’s redevelopment policy should be applied in a differentiated way based on the geographical locations of urban villages.

Highlights

Due to China’s rapid urbanization since the 1980s, urban built areas in large cities have extended to surround numerous villages that are located in formerly suburban areas and converted them into urban villages
As the redevelopment of urban villages becomes a part of national development strategy in China, it is necessary to explore the influential factors of villagers’ redevelopment willingness
Based on a questionnaire survey conducted with respondents living in 45 selected urban villages in Guangzhou, we explore the influential factors of villagers’ redevelopment willingness

Summary

Introduction

Due to China’s rapid urbanization since the 1980s, urban built areas in large cities have extended to surround numerous villages that are located in formerly suburban areas and converted them into urban villages. Urban villages are defined as villages that have been developed into rental enclaves and encircled by expanding urban built-up areas [1]. Most of the farmland in urban villages has been expropriated but rural residential land (zhai ji di) has been retained due in part to the high cost of land expropriation. The indigenous villagers, who lost their farmland during the urbanization process, built dwelling houses on their residential land informally to accommodate the housing needs of rural migrants [2]. The creation of urban villages has resulted in many negative consequences, such as overcrowding, high density, inefficient land use, and poor living environments [3,4].

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