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A quantitative evaluation of the Housing Provident Fund program in China

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  • Zhou, Xiaoqing

Abstract

The Housing Provident Fund (HPF) is the largest public housing program in China. It was created in 1999 to enhance homeownership. This program involves a mandatory saving scheme based on labor income. Past deposits are refunded when the worker purchases a house or retires. Moreover, the program provides mortgages at subsidized rates to facilitate these home purchases. I calibrate a heterogeneous-agent life-cycle model to quantify the effects of these polices. My analysis shows that a housing program with these features is expected to raise the rate of homeownership by 8.7 percentage points and to increase the average home size by 20%. I discuss the economic mechanisms by which these outcomes are achieved and which features of the HPF program are most effective. I also consider several extensions of the model such as requiring employers to contribute to the program and allowing renters to withdraw funds from the HPF.

Suggested Citation

  • Zhou, Xiaoqing, 2020. "A quantitative evaluation of the Housing Provident Fund program in China," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 61(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:chieco:v:61:y:2020:i:c:s1043951x2030033x
    DOI: 10.1016/j.chieco.2020.101436
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    Cited by:

    1. Stefano Colonnello & Mariela Dal Borgo, 2024. "Raising Household Leverage: Evidence from Co-Financed Mortgages," Working Papers 2024: 01, Department of Economics, University of Venice "Ca' Foscari".
    2. Fuad Ganbarov & Klaudia Smoląg & Rashad Muradov & Konul Aghayeva & Rumella Jafarova & Yashar Mammadov, 2020. "Sustainable Development of the Mortgage Market in Azerbaijan: Commercial Risks of Housing Construction, Social Vision, and State Influence," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(12), pages 1-18, June.
    3. Jie Chen & Wei Wang & Yan Song, 2023. "Economic Potential Gain, Income Uncertainty, and Rural Migrants’ Urban Homeownership: Evidence from China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(9), pages 1-22, April.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Public policy; Housing Provident Fund; Policy evaluation; China; Life-cycle model; Homeownership;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • E2 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Consumption, Saving, Production, Employment, and Investment
    • E6 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Macroeconomic Policy, Macroeconomic Aspects of Public Finance, and General Outlook
    • H3 - Public Economics - - Fiscal Policies and Behavior of Economic Agents
    • R2 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - Household Analysis
    • R3 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - Real Estate Markets, Spatial Production Analysis, and Firm Location

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