Overview

• Chancellor Friedrich Merz said Union and SPD are close to agreement on a Bürgergeld reform to be renamed the Grundsicherungsgesetz, with unresolved points focused on protected savings and cooperation with Jobcenters.
• The Labor Ministry’s draft would scrap the 12‑month housing grace period, meaning recipients in apartments deemed too expensive would face immediate move requirements.
• The reform is set to tighten treatment of protected savings, requiring assets above new thresholds to be used before benefits are paid, a change critics say undermines private retirement provision.
• VdK and SoVD caution that scarce affordable housing and falling construction permits make quick relocations unrealistic, warning of possible evictions or homelessness for affected households.
• Recent TV reports and local coverage highlight both hardship from delayed or minimal payments and cases of overpayments or undeclared income, intensifying pressure for stricter controls alongside housing policy fixes.