Land Contract Research Articles

A Study of GIS-based Rural Land Approval Agglomeration and Economic Growth in China

The No.1 Document of the Party Central Committee put forward to carry out a comprehensive rural land approval registration certification work in 2013. In response to the call, the Ministry of Agriculture accelerate the development of rural land approval registration certification work, to further stabilize the land contract relations, promote land transfer and scale development, add new energy for the agriculture development. By 2016, more than 90% of the country had already carried out land approval work, so this paper employs the rural land approval data to study economy growth on the role of rural land approval agglomeration in most provinces of China in 2016. With applying the geographic information systems in the application, forecasting the model of rural land approval and economic growth is the inevitable trend in development. This article in view of spatial information systems researching in the rural land approval distribution is to make prediction of the toughest task. The results show that rural land approval agglomeration has a significant positive role in the regional economic growth in different models divided by two groups. Then we use universal Kriging prediction model to analysis and validate the correction.

Changing Property-Rights Regimes: A Study of Rural Land Tenure in China

AbstractThrough two rounds of land contracting, rural households have been allocated a bundle of rights in land. We observe significant differences across villages in the amount of land to which villagers retain a claim and the institutional mechanisms governing the exchange of land rights. This study reveals the perpetuation and expansion of non-market mechanisms accruing to the benefit of village cadres and state officials and only limited emergence of market mechanisms in which households are primary beneficiaries. It identifies factors in economic, political and legal domains that incentivize and enable state officials and local cadres to capture returns from use of land. Relatedly, the study finds differences in conflict over property-rights regimes. Drawing on a pilot survey carried out by the authors in November of 2011 in Shaanxi and Jiangsu provinces (192 households in 24 villages), this paper seeks to explain heterogeneity and change in property-rights regimes over time and across space.

Study on The Contract Instruments of Land Transaction From the late Qing Dynasty to the Republic of China - A case study of Gong's Family land contract in Mengying County Shandong Province -

Study on The Contract Instruments of Land Transaction From the late Qing Dynasty to the Republic of China - A case study of Gong's Family land contract in Mengying County Shandong Province -

Perceived land tenure security in rural Xinjiang, China: The role of official land documents and trust

The role of formal tenure institutions in reducing land tenure insecurity has been long debated in the development economics literature. This study examines and compares the key determinants of perceptions of security of tenure over contract land and wasteland, two types of land that are characterized by tenure being formally and informally ascribed. The material is drawn from the Chinese region of Xinjiang, an ethnically heterogeneous region which has more complex tenure systems than elsewhere in China. Empirical estimations based on a survey of 352 households, complemented by interviews with key informants, demonstrate that formal institutions (measured by official land documents) do not significantly contribute to households' perceptions of tenure security on either type of land, and that both interpersonal trust and political trust significantly enhance perceived tenure security on either land type in our research area. The empirical evidence further shows that perceptions of tenure security on both types of land are more sensitive to trust towards village cadres than trust in villagers.

A Simulation Research of the Effect of the Reform of the Household Registration System on the Flow of Rural Labor Force: A Perspective of New Economic Geography

Based on the intermediate inputs model in new economic geography, this paper incorporates factors such as the household registration system, land property right system and the modes of the flow of labor force, and constructs the evolution model of the household registration system in China. Then it simulates the influences of the reform of the household registration system and land property right system on the flow of rural labor force by numerical calculation. It arrives at the conclusions as follows: firstly, different routes to the reform of the household registration system greatly affect the flow of rural labor force and economic development; if the restriction of the household registration system on the flow of labor force reduces, the economic system will release huge reform dividends, and if current household registration system remains, we will suffer great losses; secondly, different routes to the reform of the land property right system affect the results of the reform of the household registration system, and if the flow of rural labor force is accompanied by land, the dividends from the reform of the household registration system will enlarge. It shows that the reform of the household registration system and land property right system should be carried out together; not only the restriction of the household registration system on the flow of labor force should reduce, but also agricultural land contract rights and the right to the use of residence base should remain. It enriches & perfects current labor migration theory, and also provides a new idea for related decision-making of local governments.

Installment land contracts, single-family houses and bargaining power

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to add to the single-family house bargaining power literature by investigating the bargaining power of the principals when the seller provides financing with an installment land contract (ILC).Design/methodology/approachGeneralized spatial two-stage least squares regression is used to analyze data from 998 ILC transactions and 19,376 traditionally financed transactions all of which occurred in Montgomery County, Ohio between January 2002 and March 2011.FindingsThe results indicate that buyers using an ILC operate at a bargaining power disadvantage. In our sample, they paid approximately 6.64 per cent more, on average, than did buyers using traditional financing to purchase similar housing. This result occurred despite the fact that the included ILC transactions were limited to those carrying an interest rate that was above the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) rate at the time of contract origination.Research limitations/implicationsThe study is limited to transactions that occurred in one county of a Midwestern state over a ten-year period. Therefore, the results may not apply in other locations. Valuable extensions of the current study would include an investigation to determine if similar results apply in other local housing markets. In addition, an examination of ILC transactions for other property types (e.g. undeveloped land, commercial properties, etc.) which may involve more sophisticated vendees could prove interesting.Originality/valueThis is the first study to investigate bargaining power in the single-family house market by focusing on ILC transactions. In this rather unique market segment, evidence of an imbalance of bargaining power is found. The results suggest that prospective purchasers, real property investors, fee appraisers, county auditors and others interested in determining the value of a single-family house using the transaction price of comparable properties take precautions in identifying comparable properties. The results indicate that house acquisitions facilitated with an ILC may not be a good comparable for a traditionally financed property and vice versa.

Possession, operation, and governance as three conceptual dimensions of town and township enterprises: An analysis going back to the classical social sciences (Part II)

Through a review of the representative sociological studies on the ownership of town and township enterprises, this article uses the three classical theoretical concepts of possession, operation, and governance to analyze the formative and the operational mechanisms of town and township enterprises. In terms of possession, these enterprises compromise different elements of public, common, and private ownership. In terms of operation, they utilize land contracts, enterprise contracts, and the financial responsibility system in the institutional context of the two-track regime. In terms of governance, they fuse different mechanisms of institutions, knowledge, and other dimensions together and free up traditional familial, kinship linkage, and customary resources for practical reform and creativity. As they occupy a key position in the social process of multiple elements and moments, town and township enterprises not only provide opportunities for institutional innovation, but they also embody the institutional spirit of the reform period, which combines tradition, regime, and new market mechanisms. Enterprises also foster an enriched process of social development. This framework, which goes back to classical social science theories, may stimulate reflection on other phenomena of organizational and institutional change that are associated with social and economic reform.

Possession, operation, and governance as three conceptual dimensions of town and township enterprises: An analysis going back to the classical social sciences (Part I)

Through a review of the representative sociological studies on the ownership of town and township enterprises, this article uses the three classical theoretical concepts of possession, operation, and governance to analyze the formative and the operational mechanisms of town and township enterprises. In terms of possession, these enterprises compromise different elements of public, common, and private ownership. In terms of operation, they utilize land contracts, enterprise contracts, and the financial responsibility system in the institutional context of the two-track regime. In terms of governance, they fuse different mechanisms of institutions, knowledge, and other dimensions together and free up traditional familial, kinship linkage, and customary resources for practical reform and creativity. As they occupy a key position in the social process of multiple elements and moments, town and township enterprises not only provide opportunities for institutional innovation, but they also embody the institutional spirit of the reform period, which combines tradition, regime, and new market mechanisms. Enterprises also foster an enriched process of social development. This framework, which goes back to classical social science theories, may stimulate reflection on other phenomena of organizational and institutional change that are associated with social and economic reform.

Livelihood options of landless households and land contracts in north-west Ethiopia

Agricultural land scarcity and increasing landlessness are becoming serious livelihood challenges in rural areas of highland Ethiopia. Land contracts give access to land for landless households through sharecropping and rent. The paper examines the demand for land, livelihood options of landless households, and the role of land contracts in mitigating land shortages among the rural communities. Its specific objectives are intended to examine the: (1) land demand and livelihood options of landless households and (2) role of land contracts in mitigation of land shortages and the implication of this on sustainable management of land resources. The study was conducted in Dangila district in the north-western highlands of Ethiopia. Data were gathered from a survey of 201 rural households from April 2011 to October 2012. Descriptive statistics, Chi-square test, and independent samples t test were used to analyse the data. Results indicate that over 14 % of the studied households were landless and demanding farmlands. Sharecropping, daily labour, selling wood and charcoal, and rearing livestock were major livelihood options and strategies practiced by landless households next to crop farming. Sharecropping contracts were found to minimize the land demand of over 95 % of the landless households. However, most of the sharecropping contracts (58 %) were managed through informal customary practices. Old age, having many dependent family members, and owning large farm plots were found to encourage the practice of the sharing-out of land. Conversely, youth, higher education level, and ownership of many livestock initiated the sharing-in of land. Shared and contracted plots were, however, observed not to have been treated with proper sustainable soil and water conservation technologies. Allocating grazing lands and accessing credit facilities were actions taken by local governments to stabilize land shortages. It is concluded that making credit accessible to landless households and promoting the development of small-scale enterprises in rural areas can help to engage the idle agricultural labour and ease the pressure on land resources. Preconditions should be set to sustainably use and manage contracted lands and shared plots and to avoid the wasteful use of agricultural lands. There should be a focus on promoting small-scale enterprises (i.e. expanding the non-farming sector) in rural areas and minimizing informal land contracts. Liberalizing the land market by lifting the land contract restrictions can enhance the exchange of land among the rural households.

Land tenure (in)security and crop-tree intercropping in rural Xinjiang, China

The relationship between land tenure security and long-term land-related investment is of great importance especially given the current flux in property rights systems of agricultural land in China. This paper empirically examines the role of land tenure security in farmers’ crop-tree intercropping decisions, and is based on a comparative analysis between contract land and wasteland holders in rural Xinjiang, China. Data from a survey, carried out in 2008 among 352 households in Awati County in Xinjiang, is used to estimate the factors that affect the adoption of crop-tree intercropping. The results indicate that, for those households that only have contract land, land tenure security positively affects their adoption of crop-tree intercropping. However, for those that hold both contract land and wasteland, land tenure security negatively impacts upon their adoption of crop-tree intercropping on wasteland, as the crop-tree intercropping on wasteland can increase the perceived tenure security of wasteland. The results also suggest that the comprehensive effect of labor organization on intercropping is moderate as a result of the presence of counteracting effects.

Squatting by the privileged? A Hong Kong study on the innovations and ambiguity of property rights of irregular development

The asymmetric enforcement of land law or contracts against rich and poor squatters can broaden the gap between de facto and de jure property rights. This is socially destabilizing and negates the positive aspects of squatting as a means of innovation. As a cross-disciplinary contribution to the theorization and policy on squatting by the poor in the presence of this gap, this paper examines eight types of squatting by illegal or irregular developments of some privileged groups in colonial and post-colonial Hong Kong and discusses their positive and negative social effects. The discussion is unified under the Fourth Coase Theorem.

Household adoption of soil-improving practices and food insecurity in Ghana

Background: The persistent problem of poor agricultural practices and technology use leads to food insecurity for some farmers in Ghana. Studies show that the adoption of improved agricultural practices and technology may help stabilize production and lessen food insecurity. This study addresses the link between food insecurity and the adoption of soil-improving practices. To address this link, the objectives of this study are to examine factors associated with the adoption of soil-improving practices by Ghanaian farmers and how this adoption impacts the probability of increased food security. Using survey data, two logit models are estimated to determine 1) the likelihood of adopting soil-improving practices including how food security may influence adoption and 2) the relationship between technology adoption and food security. Results: In the adoption model, being a food secure household, the use of insecticides and seasonal lease land tenure increase the probability of adopting such soil-improving practices. Farming on better soil decreases the probability of adopting soil-improving practices. Higher incomes along with the use of chemical fertilizers, farming on better soil, and the use of commercial seeds increase the probability of the household being food secure. The results on fertilizer, soil, and seeds are most likely associated with increased production. The use of insecticides (which may be an indicator of an insect infestation) lowers the probability of being food secure. Household characteristics such as income, age, education level, and household size are not significant in influencing the adoption decision or improving household food security. Conclusions: The results lend support to a need to fine-tune the fertilizer subsidy policy implemented by the Government of Ghana. The government needs to consider that the use of fertilizer may have conflicting influences on adoption of soil-improving practices and food security. Improved seed research and distribution would improve the households’ food security. Inferences also suggest that it is important to consider land contract markets in policy decisions.

Managing Foreign Investment in Agricultural Land in Africa: The Role of Bilateral Investment Treaties and International Investment Contracts

AbstractThis paper seeks answers to three questions. What are the trends in terms of the role of bilateral investment treaties (BITs) and land contracts in addressing complex environmental, social and governance issues implicated in foreign direct investment in agricultural land (agro-FDI)? Are countries in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) effectively using these two policy instruments to maximize the benefits of agro-FDI and to minimize associated risks and dangers? Do countries in SSA appreciate and are they effectively managing the complex interactions between international investment law, as encapsulated in BITs, and other regimes of international law, particularly the international human rights regime?

The Predicament and Outlet of the Rule of Law in Rural Areas

The slowing and backward situation of China’s current rural legalization construction has not aroused our attention and seriously effects the construction and development in the country. The legalization requires us to explore new ways to solve the predicaments in the rural areas, first farmers’ rights conscious should be strengthened, reform of democratic system in the country need to be deepened, the law concerning land contract law need to be modified, and the law need to be popularized in the country so that law construction can be perfected in the rural areas.

A dynamic simulation of the ILUC effects of biofuel use in the USA

The global indirect land use change (ILUC) implications of biofuel use in the United States of America (USA) from 2001 to 2010 are evaluated with a dynamic general equilibrium model. The effects of biofuels production on agricultural land area vary by year; from a net expansion of 0.17ha per 1000 gallons produced (2002) to a net contraction of −0.13ha per 1000 gallons (2018) in Case 1 of our simulation. In accordance with the general narrative about the implications of biofuel policy, agricultural land area increased in many regions of the world. However, oil-export dependent economies experienced agricultural land contraction because of reductions in their revenues. Reducing crude oil imports is a major goal of biofuel policy, but the land use change implications have received little attention in the literature. Simulations evaluating the effects of doubling supply elasticities for land and fossil resources show that these parameters can significantly influence the land use change estimates. Therefore, research that provides empirically-based and spatially-detailed agricultural land-supply curves and capability to project future fossil energy prices is critical for improving estimates of the effects of biofuel policy on land use.

Agricultural Land Contract and Management Rights: Transferring Price and Countermeasures in Typical Agricultural Areas of China

Abstract: Henan is a large agricultural province and one of China's major grain-producing areas. Agricultural land transfer and large-scale operations will have a profound impact on regional economic development and food security. This is a case study taken in Xiwan village in Qinyang city, Henan. This paper builds a transferring pricing model using land use rights assessment and characteristic correction of land contract and management rights. Results show that the transferring price of land contract and management rights should include the economic price, social price and corrected price. The use of a price model should focus on the distinction of theory and practical application. If there is no change in agricultural project, the actual transferring price should be the sum of the economic price and social security price. If there is a change in agricultural projects, such as cropland into cash crops, the actual transferring price should be the sum of the economic price, social price and corrected price...

Church Property—A Commentary on Canon Law Governing Temporal Goods in the United States and Canada (review)

Reviewed by: Church Property—A Commentary on Canon Law Governing Temporal Goods in the United States and Canada Phillip J. Brown S.S. Church Property—A Commentary on Canon Law Governing Temporal Goods in the United States and Canada by John A. Renken. Ottawa: Saint Paul University, 2009. Canonists note the desperate need for a comprehensive English commentary on Book V of the 1983 code adapted to conditions in the United States and Canada. Robert Kennedy's commentary in the New Commentary on the Code of Canon Law remains indispensible. Others are scattered about in journals and non-English publications, e.g., De Paolis in Italian. Quite often, however, they do not account for the conditions in the United States and Canada. Church Property—A Commentary on Canon Law Governing Temporal Goods in the United States and Canada is Renken's attempt to fill the void. Practitioners with sufficient expertise will find the text useful. Its didactic value is limited, but certain sections provide helpful outlines and course readings. The treatment of acquisition and administration is especially good. Renken explains carefully and clearly the supervisory power of the Holy [End Page 273] See and diocesan bishops. The text emphasizes the important role of the administrator of public juridic persons; likewise, it differentiates between the public juridic persons administered by the diocesan bishop and those not subject to his administration. The differences in meaning between moral and juridic persons in the 1917 and 1983 codes is a conceptual minefield for students and practitioners. More detail and clarity on these canonical institutions would have been helpful. Likewise, the USCCB complementary norm on canon 1277 confuses extraordinary administration and alienation, something the 1983 code described as clearly distinct. This problem should also be clarified, since it perplexes students and poses a nightmare for practitioners. Greater attention to such difficulties would have been helpful. The effects of trust obligations on property ownership differ, sometimes significantly, in canon and civil law. Greater depth and detail would have been helpful here. "Canonization" of the civil law of contracts opens endless traps for the unwary: Is the Statute of Frauds merely an evidentiary rule, allowing oral testimony at odds with a written land contract pursuant to canon 1547? Or does it concern formation of the contract; hence, no contract-no testimony? Canon 1295 provides the application of the norms of canons 1291-1294 to transactions placing ecclesiastical property at risk of alienation. Attempting to do this involves complexities that literally boggle the mind, e.g., how to apply the minimum and maximum amounts to such transactions. The text contains several typographical errors that require careful editing, since they could lead to confusion even regarding the substance of the book. The author seems partial to the past perfect and a tendency to repetition. That being said, Church Property contains many useful references and a helpful overview of canon law on temporal goods law for discerning readers, researchers and well-guided students. Canonists working in this area should have this text as a useful resource. [End Page 274] Phillip J. Brown S.S. Theological College Washington DC Copyright © 2012 The Catholic University of America Press

A Study of the Arbitration to the Rural Land Contract Disputes in China

A Study of the Arbitration to the Rural Land Contract Disputes in China

The GIS assessment of changes in land use covers and hillslope conversion potential in the Loess Plateau

The Loess Plateau, which produces most of the deposited sediment of the Yellow River, is an area where the contradiction between human activities and environment has become more severe in recent years. The available land resources in this area are very limited, and the hillslope resource here has great modification potential for better utilization. Thus, it would be quite necessary to evaluate the land use rationality of this region. To this end, the concept and calculation method for hillslope conversion potential was suggested in this paper, which was used to assess the modification potential of hillslope resource for the study area. And the assessment of land use cover change and the temporal and spatial variation of hillslope conversion potential in the Loess Plateau between 1980 and 2005 were carried out using geographic information system (GIS) software. The results showed a decrease in the area of farmland (from 190,434 to 188,400 km2), but an expansion in both woodland (from 112,994 to 114,609 km2) and construction land (from 8,295 km2 to 10,417 km2), which were caused by the environmental-friendly policy and the development of the economy. The study also indicated that the hillslope conversion potential was limited in areas with more than 15° slopes especially in the southeast part of the Loess Plateau, which indicated that regulations like the Law of The People's Republic of China on Water and Soil Conservation and the policy of “Conversion of Farmland to Forest” had almost resolved the ecological problems in these areas. While in areas where the slope is less than 15° especially in the middle part of the study area, the hillslope conversion potential was still high. These areas would be the future key point of regulation in improving the land use rationality through the intensive land management policies like “Regulation of Rural Land Contract Rights Transfer”. Key words: Land use and land cover change (LUCC), Land use rationality, hillslope conversion potential, Loess Plateau.

To reallocate or not: Reconsidering the dilemma in China's agricultural land tenure policy

In China, rural land is collectively owned at the village level. Village officials usually have the power to reallocate land property across families on an ongoing basis due to demographic changes in the village. Realizing that frequent land reallocation and abusive land requisition will undermine economic productivity as well as social stability, the “Rural Land Contract Law” passed in 2002 explicitly reads that farmland tenure security must be maintained for at least 30 years since the last nationwide reallocation in 1998. The frequency and magnitude of land reallocation in Chinese villages have decreased as a result. However, failure to allocate land to the newly increased population often induced conflicts among village members if the security of land tenure for 30 years was strictly implemented. Administrative land reallocations then still continued in some villages to accommodate demographic changes in these places. Based on an almost nationally representative rural dataset collected in 119 villages of 6 provinces across China in 2008, this paper lays out some stylized facts about the administrative land reallocation after 1998. By analyzing the opinions of over 2200 farmers on the central policy of maintaining farmland tenure security, we are able to rationalize why some farmers support the policy while others oppose it. This analysis helps us to better understand the dilemma between efficiency and equity embedded in the current agricultural land system in China. It is further shown that social conflicts among village members may easily arise either due to administrative land reallocation or due to lack of it. We argue that this dilemma cannot be resolved effectively without coordinated reforms in household registration system which can help hundreds of millions of Chinese rural migrant workers to permanently settle in cities and release their farmland to those who stay in the countryside.