Berlin’s system for housing homeless people is extremely vulnerable to abuse, according to the investigative reporting of the “Tagesspiegel”. Private companies running such shelters make substantial profits, while residents and nearby neighbors complain about overflowing trash and infestations.
“Running a business with these accommodations is a goldmine” said Hannes Rehfeldt, a CDU social‑city councillor for Neukölln, in an interview with the “Tagesspiegel” (Monday edition). He warned that the sector is riddled with “black sheep” and that treating the placement of homeless individuals purely as a profit‑driven enterprise is fundamentally wrong.
Berlin follows a distinctive model. In the capital, most homeless people are housed by commercial providers. Across Germany, however, two‑thirds of homeless citizens live in municipal shelters.
When asked for exact figures, Berlin’s Senate Department for Social Affairs had no current data, as the city has not collected its own statistics on the matter. According to calculations by the “Tagesspiegel”, about 39 000 people were legally placed in homeless shelters in Berlin as of January 2025, including roughly 11 000 children and adolescents.