Abstract: With the help of NVivo12.0 qualitative analysis software, this paper conducts a systematical coding and analysis of the data of 60 texts of homestead system since the founding of PRC, so as to explore the reform dilemma and think about the countermeasures. The findings show that since the founding of PRC, the texts of homestead systems have generally elaborated seven policy issues that must be solved, among which four have continuously received high attention, representing the core reform tasks in their respective historical periods, i.e.,“free residence guarantee”is an issue that has been dealt with since collectivization, the governance of “indiscriminate occupation and abuse of farmland for building houses”and“extensive utilization and idling of homestead”are the key contents of the system reform since the reform and opening up, and solving the issue of“realization of property rights of rural houses”is a new task of reform since the 18th national congress of the Communist Party of China. However, there exists a directional conflict in the solution to the policy problems between“free residence guarantee”and the other three, leading the institutional reform into two“dilemmas”and failing to balance them. There is no perfect solution to satisfy both of them, therefore, it is suggested that, in the contest of present accelerated urbanization, the free distribution system of homestead should be stopped in good time, and the transfer time and space of homestead use right should be expanded as far as possible, so as to create conditions for the realization of the property right of rural houses by stimulating land saving and land intensive use.

Key words: reform of the homestead system, the dilemma of reform, text analysis