Xinhua News Agency, Beijing, February 25th Title: Go to the countryside to buy a house to build a house? The Central Document No. 1 of 2025 proposed two "not allowed"

Xinhua News Agency reporters Hu Lu and Huang Qinggang

As the pace of comprehensive rural revitalization progresses, how to manage and use rural resource assets has become a hot topic of concern to the society. The 2025 Central Document No. 1 recently released emphasized that urban residents are not allowed to buy rural houses and homesteads in rural areas, and retired cadres are not allowed to occupy land to build houses in rural areas.

"The central government's requirements are very clear. Urban residents are not allowed to buy rural houses and homesteads in rural areas, and retired cadres are not allowed to occupy land to build houses in rural areas. These two policy bottom lines must be maintained and cannot be broken." Zhu Weidong, deputy director of the Central Finance and Economic Affairs Office and deputy director of the Central Rural Affairs Office, said at a press conference of the State Information Office on the 24th.

Why should we draw this red line and the restricted area? What is the deep meaning behind this? The reporter interviewed industry experts.

According to experts, the phenomenon of private sale of rural houses and homesteads between urban and rural areas has indeed existed in recent years. For example, some urban personnel and rural residents have signed agreements privately to transfer and sell homesteads and houses. Some places have also failed to properly handle the relationship between talents going to the countryside and the management and utilization of homestead land. In order to enable retired cadres or entrepreneurs to settle down, they are granted collective membership or special qualifications through village collective economic organizations to realize the same rights as villagers to build a house.

"Household land is the basic living guarantee for rural villagers. In fact, urban residents and retired cadres go to rural areas to occupy land to build houses, which are not allowed in laws and regulations." Liu Junjie, director of the Agricultural Land Policy Research Office of the Rural Economic Research Center of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, said that the Constitution stipulates that land in rural and urban suburbs belongs to collective ownership, except for those that are owned by the law, is collectively owned; homesteads, private land and private mountains are also collectively owned, and the Land Management Law also clarifies this. This means that the conditions for obtaining the right to use homesteads are related to the membership of rural collective economic organizations. Only members of rural collective economic organizations can enjoy the right to use homesteads, and members of non-rural collective economic organizations cannot enjoy the right to use homesteads. Urban residents, retired cadres, etc. do not have the status of members of rural collective economic organizations and cannot apply for homestead land in rural areas.

Why are urban residents and retired cadres not allowed to occupy land to buy houses in rural areas? Liu Junjie said that land is the lifeblood of farmers, and homesteads are the foundation and the "last guarantee line" for farmers to survive. If free trading is allowed, social entities going to the countryside may lead to some farmers losing their land driven by short-term interests, and their future life security will face huge risks. "Prohibition of urban residents from buying housing and homesteads in rural areas is to add a 'safety valve' to farmers' rights and interests to ensure that they will not lose their foundation for survival in the process of modernization," he said.

In the view of Tang Xiaofu, associate professor at the School of Agricultural Sciences of Guangxi University, if urban residents and retired cadres are allowed to purchase homesteads, the limited resources of rural homesteads will be occupied by external personnel. On the one hand, some rural residents who meet the conditions may not be able to obtain homestead land, which will intensify contradictions and disputes in land use, public resource allocation, etc., and affect the harmony and stability of rural society; on the other hand, if homestead transactions are liberalized, social funds may occupy too much land and other rural resources, causing rural development to deviate from a reasonable direction.

Liu Junjie said that the Central Document No. 1 clearly stated two "no permissions" because it is considered that in the context of promoting the comprehensive revitalization of rural areas, social forces are very enthusiastic about investing in rural construction, and the policy requirements for the standardized management and orderly use of homesteads are very high in actual operations, and some localities do not necessarily have accurate, in place and comprehensive grasp of policies. Clearly emphasizing and reaffirming the red lines and restricted areas will help local governments be more strict and standardized when implementing relevant policies, avoid policy implementation deviations and loopholes, and ensure that policies are implemented correctly.

Wei Wanqing, a professor at the School of Social Development of East China Normal University, believes that although the Central Document No. 1 clearly emphasizes that these two "not allowed", it does not mean that rural housing and homestead resources cannot be connected with external needs.

The Central Document No. 1 also proposes to explore the effective implementation forms of revitalization and utilization of housing legally owned by farmers through rental, equity investment, cooperation, etc. "Through the compliant revitalization and utilization of idle farm houses, we can better meet the needs of returning home and people who are willing and sentimental to rural construction." Wei Wanqing said.