"This book presents an authoritative account of urban land reform in China - a unique attempt to merge the existing socialist landownership system with market mechanisms. Compared with urban land reform in other transition economies, China's reform has been somewhat gradual."--BOOK JACKET.

"The book begins with a historical account of the land tenure system in China, demonstrating that land reform undertaken for the sake of political restructuring is unlikely to produce satisfactory results. The different strands of urban land reform in China are examined: the legal framework, the administrative structure, and the property finance framework.

An analysis of the urban housing market shows how the urban land system affects significantly the general socioeconomic system in China."--BOOK JACKET.

"The detailed implications of the urban land reform are illustrated by a case-study of the Shanghai land system. This is contrasted with the transitional experience of a more government-led urban land policy in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region after the handover from Britain in July 1997. The conclusion examines the rationale for and the impact of land reform in China's transition to a market economy."--BOOK JACKET.