The HOWOGE Tenants' Council advocates for tenants in many areas - in times of rising rents and restructuring, the agenda is particularly full.
Halftime. The second half of the HOWOGE tenant council's five-year legislative period is already beginning this year. The incentive to make a difference and to assert the tenants' interests across the neighborhood is great: "At the end of the day, we want to know what we have achieved," says Mathias Voigt, chairman of the committee. The tenant council has set itself a lot of goals for the current year. The members are now introducing a quarterly meeting with Katharina Greis and Ulrich Schiller to discuss questions and current concerns directly with the HOWOGE management - and to have a say. Because: The tenant council wants to be involved in important decisions. "Working with HOWOGE is fun and it is a good relationship on equal terms," emphasizes Voigt. Nevertheless, the elected tenant representatives would like to be more involved. Some topics are particularly close to the committee's heart.
Tenant app, housing construction, rent increases – the tenant council wants to have a greater say
As part of the restructuring of HOWOGE and the customer centers, there will soon be a tenant app in which tenants can easily report concerns and view the status of their report. The tenant council would like to be involved here and incorporate the wishes of the tenants.
The tenant council also plays an important role as a mediator: "Many new apartments are being built," explains Voigt. While this is important, it also brings with it dissenting voices: "Existing tenants often feel pressured, quiet spaces are disturbed and there are two camps of interest." Here the tenant council acts as a mediator in so-called participation procedures - always in close consultation with HOWOGE, the tenants and the tenant initiatives.
However, the tenant council lacked communication on one point: after the new cooperation agreement had been concluded at the end of last year, when rents had to be increased for some tenants, dissenting voices from Berlin's tenant councils became louder. The representatives were not and are not only concerned with the rent increase. According to Voigt, this is partly understandable. The housing associations have to build, and this can hardly be financed from the current rents. The tenant councils' criticism is more about the way in which it is done.
In his view, raising rents just before Christmas was bad timing. There are also fears that too little consideration is being given to individual needs. The process for the so-called affordability promise is too complicated. Tenants could get into financial difficulties, and lawsuits are also pending, notes Voigt, who is himself a lawyer.
Close exchange with tenant councils and politicians
There was, however, one positive side effect: all of Berlin's tenant councils joined this protest, which further strengthened cooperation and made their voices heard by state politicians. The chairmen and deputies meet every three months to exchange ideas, explains Voigt. "There is close communication so that we can share experiences with one another."
The HOWOGE tenants' council is also in talks with politicians. A meeting with the Governing Mayor Kai Wegner is planned for the future. There is another issue on the tenants' council's table: living in WBS apartments on the basis of an entitlement that is no longer valid. It is not uncommon for WBS apartments to be lived in long after the financial situation no longer requires social support - for example, after the student has finished his studies and entered working life. This social housing is then lacking for others.
"We talk to politicians," says Voigt. And although the work in the tenants' council is very demanding and voluntary, the members would like to be even more involved in the future.
To person
Name:Mathias Voigt
Position:Tenant Council Chairman
Member since:October 2022 (current legislative period) /2017 (previous LP)