The rural collective construction land (RCCL) market imperfections, as well as informal regulations, may have contributed to high transaction costs. Well-functioning land markets play an essential role in land-use revenue, land-use efficiency, and land allocation efficiency for the rural collective economic organization (RCEO). Therefore, specific land-use patterns and detailed transaction rules for the land rental market and land sales market, respectively, make a contribution to a suitable market model with lower transaction costs and higher market efficiency. Through an empirical investigation in Nanhai District, Gungdong Province, this article builds on the theoretical framework of Williamson’s transaction costs, where the asset specificity, uncertainty, and transaction frequency have a significant influence on the RCCL market model choice. Probit model results show that (1) the RCEO prefers to choose the land sales market when the RCCL market has higher asset specificity so that the land sales market can counteract transaction costs by creating land revenue for long-term investments. Thus, the land sales market is a more appropriate choice when the trading land is a large area in a great location. (2) The rental market choice is more suitable for the RCCL market with higher transaction uncertainty. Therefore, the RCEO can detail transaction rules for the land sales and rental markets, respectively. We propose that local governments need to announce regulations for the longest contract period and the land development planning (floor area ratio, building density, floor height, etc.) of different land-use types (industrial land and commercial land) for the land sales market and the land rental market.

Urbanization involves expansion of the amount of land covered by urban uses. Rural to urban land conversion (RULC) can satisfy demand for the additional space that growing cities require. However, there can be negative consequences, such as the loss of productive agricultural land and/or the destruction of natural habitats. Considerable interest therefore exists among policy makers and researchers regarding how the efficiency of RULC can be maximized. We used the Gini index and a data envelopment analysis to quantify the relationship between RULC and economic development for 17 metropolitan areas in China. We did this from two perspectives: (i) coordination; and (ii) efficiency. We found that economic agglomeration fosters the coordination of the amount of rural land that is allocated to be converted to urban uses. Similarly, economic agglomeration increases the efficiency of RULC in terms of the processes of socio-economic production. Through production technology innovation and readjustment in the scale of input factors, the productive efficiency of RULC can be promoted. Our findings suggest a need to strictly limit the amount of RULC, design differential land management policies according to location and development level, and adjust RULC allocation between different cities. Further, in harnessing the potential of intensive urban land use and restructuring, production factors, including land, can be enhanced through technological innovation. Research presented in this paper provides insights for areas of the world which are yet to undergo the rapid urbanization that China has experienced, but where it is projected to occur over the coming decades.

A complete understanding of homestead policy is crucial for farmers and is key to China’s rural homestead system reform. However, intergenerational cognitive differences have hindered reform progress as the changes to the system are complex. Based on Distributed Cognition Theory, this study established a theoretical framework to explain the formation of farmers’ homestead policy cognition and constructed an indicator system addressing personal power, regional power, and cultural power dimensions. Based on 2445 questionnaires across 345 villages in 37 counties of Jiangxi province, China, this study employed an OLS regression model to analyze factors influencing intergenerational differences in farmers’ homestead policy cognition and the ISM model to explore the mechanisms and driving forces. First, homestead policy cognition of older generation farmers (OFs) was significantly lower than that of new generation farmers (NFs). Second, personal, regional, and cultural power exerted more significant influence on the homestead policy cognition of OFs, when compared to NFs. OFs who reported higher education, participation in the formulation of village rules and regulations, and acquisition of homestead by application exhibited higher homestead policy cognition. Finally, regional power was found to be the root factor contributing to the formation of homestead policy cognition between the two generations studied. The policy cognition formation mechanism of OFs was found to be “regional power - personal power - cultural power - policy cognition.” Conversely, the policy cognition formation mechanism of NFs was found to be “regional power - cultural power - policy cognition.” These results suggest that government agencies should respect intergenerational cognitive differences, improve the policy publicity system, and adopt targeted measures to address the specific cognitive characteristics of different generations. This study explored the intergenerational differences in farmers’ homestead policy cognition, as well as the mechanisms for their formation, offering insights for rural land system reforms in other countries.