Guangzhou residents have more living space than their counterparts in Beijing and Shanghai, according to a review of housing conditions in the mainland's largest cities.
The December findings of the Gallup China Index - a monthly telephone survey of about 1,000 respondents in Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou - revealed that Guangzhou residents on average have living space of 67.9 square metres (730 square feet) per household and 20 square metres per capita.
Most households are three-person nuclear families, a factor attributable to Beijing's stringent family planning policies since the 1970s.
Still, extended three-generation families continue to make up a visible proportion of the community.
Urban overpopulation also has led to a shortage of toilets. However, things are improving. At present, the wealthiest households even have two, three or more toilets.
In Beijing, they constitute 3.3 per cent of all households, in Shanghai 9.1 per cent and in Guangzhou 11.8 per cent.
However, shared toilets with neighbours remain commonplace - in Beijing, they are used in 17.5 per cent of households, in Shanghai 17.5 per cent but 3.3 per cent in Guangzhou.