Overview
- The federal housing ministry said it will meet roughly €1 billion in savings for 2027 by restructuring Wohngeld, the housing cost subsidy.
- Specific measures are not set yet and will be laid out in a concept expected by autumn 2026 and in the 2027 budget draft.
- The government is weighing benefit bundling proposed by the Sozialstaatskommission, with Labor Minister Bärbel Bas backing a move to combine Wohngeld with the child supplement and parts of basic support.
- The German Tenants’ Association and the DGB, along with Green and Left lawmakers, oppose cuts and argue lower rents and more social housing would ease costs without reducing aid.
- About 1.2 million households received Wohngeld in 2024 with €4.7 billion in federal and state spending, and retirees and families make up the bulk of recipients.