Homelessness Homelessness, also known as houselessness or being unhoused or unsheltered, is the condition of lacking stable, safe, and functional housing. It includes living on the streets, moving between temporary accommodation with family or friends, liv ...

in Germany is a significant social issue, estimated to affect around 678,000 people, including about 372,000 people accommodated by public services, e.g. municipalities, in refugee shelters, etc. there had been a 150% increase in the homeless population within the country since 2014. Around 22,000 of the homeless population are reported to be children. In addition, the country has yet to publish statistics on homelessness at a Federal Level despite it being an ongoing and widespread matter.

History

Prior to WWII

In 1933, the

Nazi Party The Nazi Party, officially the National Socialist German Workers' Party ( or NSDAP), was a far-right politics, far-right political party in Germany active between 1920 and 1945 that created and supported the ideology of Nazism. Its precursor ...

passed a Law "against Habitual and Dangerous Criminals", which allowed for the relocation of beggars, homeless, and the unemployed to

concentration camps A concentration camp is a prison or other facility used for the internment of political prisoners or politically targeted demographics, such as members of national or ethnic minority groups, on the grounds of national security, or for exploit ...

WWII and its impact

In 1942, British bombing raids destroyed a total of 3.6 million homes, with 7.5 million Germans left homeless.

Current statistics

The homeless levels have risen more than 4% between 2017–2018. In addition, according to BAGW's report, refugees are more likely to be homeless. The number of homeless people with a refugee background increased by 5.9%. A majority of the homeless population is men (three in four). There is a worrying increase in the amount of young homeless in some countries including Germany.

Causes

The Federal Government acknowledges that homelessness in Germany is caused by multiple factors, "such as financial, domestic, and individual psychosocial reasons" and that it is not merely rooted in the lack of affordable accommodation. According to Global Homelessness Statistics, "Around 50% of poor households spend more than 40% of their disposable income on housing". The Berlin Homeless Shelter Association provides housing to the homeless population in Berlin, Germany.

Prevention

Research has been conducted to investigative proactive ways to prevent homelessness. People being evicted from their homes is one of the most common factors for homelessness. Some instruments used to stop the

eviction Eviction is the removal of a Tenement (law), tenant from leasehold estate, rental property by the landlord. In some jurisdictions it may also involve the removal of persons from premises that were foreclosure, foreclosed by a mortgagee (often ...

process, include financial support, legal provision for cases of hardship, and assistance negotiations with landlords. As stated by Dr. Busch-Geertsema, coordinator of the European Observatory on Homelessness,

prevention Prevention may refer to: Health and medicine * Preventive healthcare, measures to prevent diseases or injuries rather than curing them or treating their symptoms General safety * Crime prevention, the attempt to reduce deter crime and crimin ...

is categorized in several ways:

primary prevention Preventive healthcare, or prophylaxis, is the application of healthcare measures to prevent diseases.Hugh R. Leavell and E. Gurney Clark as "the science and art of preventing disease, prolonging life, and promoting physical and mental health a ...

(larger risk groups),

secondary prevention Preventive healthcare, or prophylaxis, is the application of healthcare measures to prevent diseases.Hugh R. Leavell and E. Gurney Clark as "the science and art of preventing disease, prolonging life, and promoting physical and mental health a ...

(those being threatened with eviction), and tertiary prevention (persons who are already homeless).

References

{{Homelessness Society of Germany

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...