OCDE - Data on homelessness and housing exclusion 2026 - Alemania de 2026

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DATA ON HOMELESSNESS AND HOUSING EXCLUSION 2026: GERMANY © OECD 2026

Summary of key data and information Summary of key data and information Official statistical definition of homelessness (Table 1) According to the Wohnungslosenberichterstattungsgesetz, Germany legally defines homelessness as follows: Homelessness exists when the use of an apartment by one person or a majority of persons from the same household is not secured by a tenancy agreement or a lease agreement or by a right in rem, or an apartment is not available to a person or a majority of persons in the same household for other reasons. Latest national estimates of homelessness (Table 2, Table 3) 531 600 individuals, representing 0.63% of the total population (2024) 42% are women, 57% are men Point-in-time count, based on the Homeless Reporting Act homelessness report ETHOS Light groups included Included: • ETHOS Light 1: Living on the streets, in public spaces • ETHOS Light 2: Emergency accommodation (e.g. shelters) • ETHOS Light 3: Accommodation for the homeless (e.g. hostels and women’s refuges) • ETHOS Light 5: People in non-conventional dwellings (e.g. caravans, cars or tents) • ETHOS Light 6: Living temporarily with others in conventional housing (e.g. sofa-surfing) Not included: • ETHOS Light 4: People in institutions Notes: Each ETHOS Light group includes one or more sub-categories of living situations. ETHOS Light groups are considered as “included” in the data collection approach if at least one of the sub-categories is counted. Legal framework to collect data on homelessness (Table 4) The Wohnungslosenberichterstattungsgesetz governs data collection on homelessness in Germany. The legislation mandates the data collection of sheltered homelessness at the federal level as well as the regular assessment of

Legal framework to collect data on homelessness (Table 4) The Wohnungslosenberichterstattungsgesetz governs data collection on homelessness in Germany. The legislation mandates the data collection of sheltered homelessness at the federal level as well as the regular assessment of potential improvements to the method to measure people experiencing homelessness to address measurement gaps. Homelessness Strategy (Table 5) • National Homelessness Strategy: The National Action Plan Against Homelessness, “Together for a home,” approved in April 2024 • Regional and/or local homelessness strategies exist Approaches to collect data on homelessness (Table 6) • Annual reporting of people sleeping in shelters for the homeless: Annual point-in-time count of all people staying in nationally registered shelters (Table 6.1.) • Biennial survey to count 1) people sleeping rough and 2) people staying with family/ friends: A survey of clients of a range of service providers that have been identified as likely to provide support to people experiencing homelessness (Table 6.2) Table 1. Official statistical definition of homelessness Statistical definition Homelessness A person is considered homeless when: According to the law that became effective in April 2020 [Wohnungslosenberichterstattungsgesetz], a person is considered homeless when there is no rental or tenancy agreement for a flat (and no property rights); a flat is not available for other reasons. The following situations are counted in data collection efforts described in Table 2.DEU: staying in accommodation/shelter by care system; staying in homes, asylums, institutions or women’s houses because they lack a flat; living in cheap motels; staying with friends/family; and/or living in the street (rough sleepers). Data on homelessness and housing exclusion 2026: Germany2  DATA ON HOMELESSNESS AND HOUSING EXCLUSION 2026: GERMANY © OECD 2026

Table 2. Data on people experiencing homelessness: Headline estimate, by living situation Presented according to ETHOS Light Typology Year Headline estimate of homelessness

DATA ON HOMELESSNESS AND HOUSING EXCLUSION 2026: GERMANY © OECD 2026

Table 2. Data on people experiencing homelessness: Headline estimate, by living situation Presented according to ETHOS Light Typology Year Headline estimate of homelessness (Individuals) % of total population ETHOS Light 1 People living rough ETHOS Light 2 People in emergency accommodation ETHOS Light 3 People in accommodation for the homeless ETHOS Light 4 People living in institutions ETHOS Light 5 People living in unconventional dwellings ETHOS Light 6 People staying with family/friends 2022 262 600 0.31% 38 500(a) 178 100 Included in ETHOS 2 Not included Included in ETHOS 1 54 800(b) 2024 531 600 0,63% 47 300(c) 439 500(e, f) Included in ETHOS 2 Not included Included in ETHOS 1 60 400(d) Metadata: • Type of count: Point-in-time • Data are comparable across years: Yes

• Included in headline estimate:

o Children: Yes o Temporary accommodation for: ‒ Asylum seekers: No ‒ Refugees: Yes ‒ Victims/survivors of domestic violence: No Note: Data based on the annual reporting of people sleeping in shelters for the homeless and the Biennial survey to count i) people sleeping rough and ii) people staying with family/friends. The sum of all ETHOS categories is larger than the headline estimate due to an estimate of 8 800 (2022)

and 15 600 (2024) double entries. (a, c) Sum of adults and children living rough (37 400 adults and 1 100 children in 2022); 45 250 adults and 2 050 children in 2024). (b, d) Sum of adults and children staying with family/friends (49 300 adults and 5 500 children in 2022; 53 800 adults and 6 600 children in 2024). ( e) Newer data is available from the 2025 annual report of people sleeping in shelters , which counted 474 700 people in ETHOS Light 2 and 3. The table reports data from 2024 for these categories to ensure alignment with the mo st recent biennial survey (Destatis, 2025). (f) In 2024, ETHOS Light 2 included 136 900 Ukrainian refugees staying in temporary accommodation.

Source: OECD Questionnaire on Affordable and Social Housing (QuASH); Federal Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs (BMAS), 2022; Federal Ministry for Housing, Urban Development and Construction (BMWSB), 2024; Homeless Reporting Act homelessness report.

Table 3. Data on people experiencing homelessness: Headline estimate, by sub-group and living situation Presented according to ETHOS Light Typology, 2024 Single adults Men(b) Women(b) Youth (aged under 25) Older people (aged 65 and over(c)) Families with children (# of households) Headline estimate of homelessness(a) 184 947 303 842 220 651 194 196 NA NA As percentage of total population experiencing homelessness(a) 35% 57% 42% 37% NA NA ETHOS Light 1: People living rough 26 735 33 384 8 599 3 642 2 082 NA ETHOS Light 2: People in emergency accommodation 139 045 240 920 189 505 176 000 38 235 NA ETHOS Light 3: People in

rough 26 735 33 384 8 599 3 642 2 082 NA ETHOS Light 2: People in emergency accommodation 139 045 240 920 189 505 176 000 38 235 NA ETHOS Light 3: People in accommodation for the homeless Included in ETHOS Light 2 Included in ETHOS Light 2 Included in ETHOS Light 2 Included in ETHOS Light 2 Included in ETHOS Light 2 NA ETHOS Light 4: People living in institutions Not included Not included Not included Not included Not included Not included ETHOS Light 5: People living in unconventional dwellings Included in ETHOS Light 1 Included in ETHOS Light 1 Included in ETHOS Light 1 Included in ETHOS Light 1 Included in ETHOS Light 1 NA ETHOS Light 6: People staying with family/friends 19 167 29 538 22 547 14 554 1 068 NA

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DATA ON HOMELESSNESS AND HOUSING EXCLUSION 2026: GERMANY © OECD 2026

• Type of count: Point-in-time
• Included in headline estimate:

o Children: Yes o Temporary accommodation for: ‒ Asylum seekers: No ‒ Refugees: Yes ‒ Victims/survivors of domestic violence: No Note: Sub-groups are not mutually exclusive. (a) The headline estimate by demographic breakdown does not include 15 570 people who are subject to double-counting across the two data sources used in 2024: the annual reporting of people sleeping in shelters for the homeless (Destatis) and the biennial survey to count people sleeping rough and people staying with family/friends (BMWSB, 2024). Consequently, the percentages reported across all demographic groups should be understood as upper-bound estimates, as a share of the headline estimate of homelessness of 531 600.

the biennial survey to count people sleeping rough and people staying with family/friends (BMWSB, 2024). Consequently, the percentages reported across all demographic groups should be understood as upper-bound estimates, as a share of the headline estimate of homelessness of 531 600. (b) Gender could be reported male, female, “diverse/other” or unspecified. Combined with doub le counting, percentages therefore do not sum to 100%. (c) 65 years or older applies to ETHOS Light 1 and ETHOS Light 6; 60 years or older applies to ETHOS Light 2. Given the different age groups, no estimate on the percentage of this age group is provided.

Source: OECD Questionnaire on Affordable and Social Housing (QuASH); Ministry for Housing, Urban Development and Construction (BMWSB), 2024;

Destatis, 2024. Table 4. Legal framework to collect data on homelessness Legal framework Law that governs data collection on homelessness Wohnungslosenberichterstattungsgesetz Legal obligations The law mandates data collection (of sheltered homelessness only) at the federal level. The law also mandates that the government must regularly assess how measurement of people experiencing homelessness can be improved and address measurement gaps. Table 5. Homelessness strategy Homelessness strategies in place National Homelessness Strategy National Action Plan Against Homelessness Regional and/or local homelessness strategies exist Yes Table 6. Approaches to collect data on homelessness 6.1. Annual reporting of people sleeping in shelters for the homeless Description The Federal Statistical Office has the mandate to conduct an annual point-in-time count of all people staying in nationally registered shelters on 31 January. Shelter providers report into a centralised system the number of shelter users on that day each year. Type of count generated Point-in-time Methods Service-based method Lead authority(ies) Federal Statistical Office Source(s) of information Service providers Scope National Depth of data Data disaggregated by (age, sex, nationality, duration of homelessness, etc.) Frequency Annual

Point-in-time Methods Service-based method Lead authority(ies) Federal Statistical Office Source(s) of information Service providers Scope National Depth of data Data disaggregated by (age, sex, nationality, duration of homelessness, etc.) Frequency Annual ETHOS Light groups included: • ETHOS Light 2: Emergency accommodation (e.g. shelters) • ETHOS Light 3: Accommodation for the homeless (e.g. hostels and women’s refuges) Note: Each ETHOS Light group includes one or more subcategories of living situations. ETHOS Light groups are considered as “included” in the data collection approach if at least one of the sub-categories is counted.4  DATA ON HOMELESSNESS AND HOUSING EXCLUSION 2026: GERMANY © OECD 2026

6.2. Biennial survey to count 1) people sleeping rough and 2) people staying with family/friends Description A research institute appointed by th e Federal Ministry for Housing, Urban Development and Building condu cts a survey of clients of a range of service providers that have been identified as likely to provide support to peop le experiencing homelessness (e.g. food banks, health clinics, youth cen tres, job centres, drop incentres, women’s support services). The approach relies on multiple method s: administrative data are used to contact potential service providers to the homeless population at the municipal level; a stratified geographic count (a variation of a street count) is used to determine the geographic areas that should be covered in the survey; and service-based methods are used to collect data from researchers conducting interviews/surve ys with individuals experiencing homelessness. Type of count generated Point-in-time Methods • Administrative data • A stratified geographic count (a variation of a street count) • Service-based method Lead authority(ies) Federal Ministry for Housing, Urban Development and Building A research institute Source(s) of information The individuals experiencing homelessness are the direct source of data.

Scope National scope: 1) random representative sample of rural and

• Service-based method Lead authority(ies) Federal Ministry for Housing, Urban Development and Building A research institute Source(s) of information The individuals experiencing homelessness are the direct source of data.

Scope National scope: 1) random representative sample of rural and urban municipalities; 2) the likelihood of a municipality’s inclusion in the sample increases with population size Depth of data Data are disaggregated by sociodemographic characteristics

Frequency Biennial ETHOS Light groups included: • ETHOS Light 1: Living on the streets, in public spaces • ETHOS Light 5: People in non-conventional dwellings (e.g. caravans, cars or tents) • ETHOS Light 6: Living temporarily with others in conventional housing (e.g. sofa-surfing)

Note: Each ETHOS Light group includes one or more subcategories of living situations. ETHOS Light groups are considered as “included” in the data collection approach if at least one of the sub-categories is counted.

Please refer to the OECD Affordable Housing Database, indicator HC3.1.Population experiencing homelessness, https://www.oecd.org/content/oecd/en/data/datasets/oecd-affordable-housingdatabase.html.

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DATA ON HOMELESSNESS AND HOUSING EXCLUSION 2026: GERMANY © OECD 2026

© OECD 2026

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DATA ON HOMELESSNESS AND HOUSING EXCLUSION 2026: GERMANY © OECD 2026

© OECD 2026

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