More than 13,000 citizen's allowance households in Saxony have to pay extra for rent and heating costs because their home is not considered adequate. Last year, this affected around one in ten households with citizen's allowance, according to the federal government's response to a question from the Die Linke group in the Bundestag. On average, these households had to pay around 83 euros out of their own pockets. Households with children had to pay a particularly high amount - an average of just under 102 euros per month.
Actually, housing costs, i.e. rent and heating costs, should be covered by the state for recipients of citizen's allowance. However, this only applies if they are deemed reasonable. To this end, the rent and apartment size must not exceed certain regionally defined reference values. Anyone living in an apartment that is too large will be asked to move or sublet a room, for example. According to the Ministry of Labor, almost 320,000 Bürgergeld households nationwide were not reimbursed for their full housing costs and had to pay an average of €103 per month themselves.
There are considerable differences across Saxony. Citizens' allowance households in the cities of Dresden (114 euros) and Leipzig (104 euros) had to make the highest additional payments, with the lowest in the district of Görlitz (59 euros). Nationwide, Citizen's Income households in Berlin had to pay the most (almost 160 euros).
Social associations criticize: Fixed rent limits often unrealistic
Social welfare associations have long criticized the fact that the fixed rent limits are unrealistic in many places. Those affected often have no chance at all of finding cheaper accommodation. As a result, they have to pay ever higher amounts - and the money is then lacking for food, clothing and education. "Anyone who gets an apartment in the city center at all with the citizen's allowance is paying extra and saving up for it," Left Party MP Caren Lay told the German Press Agency.
Despite the introduction of a waiting period, the housing cost gap has widened again in the last year, complained Left Party MP Heidi Reichinnek. Since the start of the citizen's allowance, the basic rent of new recipients has not been checked for appropriateness for a year, but has always been paid in full. Long-term recipients, on the other hand, including many single parents, carers and those on top-up benefits, are left alone, explained Reichinnek. "They still have to make up the shortfall from the standard rate, which is actually intended for food and clothing. I find that intolerable." The cost limits should be increased to such an extent that an apartment could be rented and heated from them.
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