Abstract
This paper uses the survey data of graduates from six ‘985 Project’ Universities1 1 In order to set up world-class universities and high-level universities, the Chinese government started the ‘985 Project’ in 1998. There were 9 universities as the first-selected universities in this project. By the end of 2013, there were 39 universities in this project. Hence, these 39 universities are the best universities in China. in 2010, and for the first time systematically elaborates homeownership of young middle class, i.e. those born in the 1980s generation, and its influence factors. The research shows that: the overall homeownership rate of the ‘985 Project’ Universities graduates is higher than the average rate of the urban youth in China; the graduates who own a house tend to have better-off parental backgrounds and have better quality of life, which reveals social division; parents’ financial help, their marriage status and age are the most important factors influencing homeownership. The results emphasize the increasingly important social stratification function of housing. The government needs to increase the macroeconomic control on real estate and to enhance the housing welfare policies, so as to prevent further social segregation.
Keywords:
Youth; Homeownership; Intellectual elite; The only child; Social stratification
Data source: United States Census Bureau <