The chapter discusses how land ownership works in China's economy and the history of land expropriation. Reforms in land and housing systems were crucial after 1979. The '82 Constitution allows the state to take land for public use. In the past, urban state-owned land was free to use, but in the late 1980s, a fee system was introduced. The transition from a planned to a market economy affected land expropriation. The government's finances play a role in land expropriation. Land can be taken for planned projects or individually.