The policy of using collective land to build rental housing was first implemented in 2017 in the context of the Chinese government’s proposal of “housing for living, not speculation”. However, due to the constraints of laws and regulations, the attitudes of local governments and social capital, and the attitudes of collective economic organizations, the progress of pilot projects varies from city to city. This paper selects the Nanjing Zhetang project and analyzes the factors affecting the willingness of rural households in the collective economic organizations to which the pilot project belongs to the land transfer through the framework of Institutional Analysis and Development (IAD). Finally, it is concluded that the strength of the collective economic organization of the pilot project, the traditional concept of land acquisition of farmers, and the concern of farmers about the unfair distribution of expected benefits jointly affect the attitude of farmers towards land transfer in the market. Finally, relevant suggestions are given to provide reference for other pilot projects in China.