Why Migrant Workers in China Continue to Build Large Houses in Home Villages: A Case Study of a Migrant-Sending Village in Anhui

Abstract

This article uses a case study of a migrant-sending village in Anhui to understand why migrant workers build large houses in home villages. The rural sex-ratio imbalance at marriageable ages, heightened by the rural-urban migration of women, has led to an increase in the negotiating power of young women in the rural marriage market. Young men’s families construct large houses to attract potential brides and facilitate patrilocal residence. The lack of maternity leave and affordable childcare in migrant destination cities encourages female migrants to return to the countryside to give birth to and raise children. Large rural houses offer young female migrants comfortable places to live and privacy when they cohabitate with their parents-in-law, who help them raise their children. Although most new-generation migrant workers do not have agricultural experience, rural areas are important to this generation because they provide affordable housing and family support.