Uneven compensation and relocation for displaced residents: The case of Nanjing

Abstract

a b s t r a c tLand marketization and housing commodification have stimulated inner-city restructuring and urban expansion in China and have also induced a large amount of population displacement. Affordable housing, as part of compensation, tends to be the most common relocation housing for displaced households. It is allocated through two approaches: in-kind compensation and monetary compensation. Local government provides in-kind compensation to displaced households in the form of affordable housing, as direct compensation for demolished houses, and gives priority to those who have received monetary compensation to enable them to purchase affordable housing at a discount from the market price. The process of negotiation between local government and displaced households is complicated. As a result, uneven compensation occurs in terms of compensation approaches, as well as in how much displaced households are paid for similar new affordable houses. This study conducts a detailed analysis of the uneven displacement compensation and relocation process. It uses residential surveys conducted in Nanjing to examine uneven compensation along two dimensions: compensation approaches and the purchasing discount on new, compensated affordable housing.

Family or Money? The False Dilemma in Property Dispossession in Shanghai

“…The second strand of literature is what I call money talk (e.g. Weinstein and Ren, 2009;Hu et al, 2015). It contentiously sees monetary compensation as both the problem and the solution in the displacees' predicament.…”

A Crisis of Crisis Management? Evaluating Post-2010 Housing Restructuring in Nanjing, China

“…This makes Nanjing outstanding in a national context. A previous study conducted by Hu, Hooimeijer, Bolt, and Sun (2015) in Nanjing focused on the allocation of affordable housing (jingjishiyongfang) to displacees.…”

Understanding the Experiences of Relocatees during Forced Relocation in Chinese Urban Restructuring

“…They are informed that their neighbourhood will be demolished and that they have to move out. In this stage, reaching an agreement on compensation between relocatees and the evictors is the main focus (Chen and Lai 2013;Hu et al 2015) . The nature and forms of compensation will be discussed in Section 3.…”

“…Local governments or developers determine the value of the dwellings slated for demolition, based on housing conditions (dwelling size and location of neighbourhood) and the local housing market (Chen and Lai 2013). Relocatees' choices concerning compensation directly affect the outcomes of forced relocation (Hu et al 2015). If they choose in-kind compensation and the value of their new housing is higher than that of their old dwelling, they must pay the difference; if the value of the demolished housing is higher than that of the new one, relocatees then either receive additional financial compensation or are given other housing.…”

“…Some studies have found that relocatees have little influence on the decision-making process, while developers and local governments dominate the process and displace original low-income residents to the urban periphery (He and Wu 2005;He and Wu 2007;Ren 2014;Shin 2014). Tough disputes and conflicts may arise between relocatees, developers and local governments regarding redevelopment plans and compensation criteria (He 2012;Hin and Xin 2011;Hu et al 2015). Some scholars argue that the essence of the interactions between different stakeholders at this stage concerns the mobilization of social relationships in the context of, and against the accumulation of space-based capital, and they regard the relocatees' strong response as a claim to "the right to the city", including the rights to the equitable distribution of the social benefits of development and to engage in decision-making (Qian and He 2012;Weinstein and Ren 2009).…”