Stefan Wallner, the head of the housing emergency service of the Munich-Land district association of workers’ welfare, spoke to Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier about his experiences and perspectives from many years of practice. Wallner was invited to a meeting with Steinmeier at Bellevue Palace in Berlin for the “Day of the Homeless” last Sunday. His balance after the meeting: “The look at the nationwide activities that this day made possible was worth it.”
The start of the specialist center for the prevention of homelessness 15 years ago in the district of Munich was a “big step in the right direction”. Step by step, the FOL has since been developed into emergency housing assistance, for example by employing a real estate agent, cooperating with lawyers and housing cooperatives and supporting people who are forced to evict. According to Wallner, the discussion in Berlin with politicians, representatives of housing authorities and foundations from all over Germany showed “that not everyone is in such a good position”.
But Wallner also sees potential for improvement in the Munich district: “We would like to see a right to advice for people who become homeless in all communities. Anyone who loses their home usually faces a whole mountain of problems.” Only when these “construction sites” have been clarified does the search for a new apartment really make sense and the person is “rentable”. On the Day of the Homeless, Federal President Steinmeier expressed his fear that even more people in Germany would lose their homes due to rising prices in autumn and winter.