In the Dutch middle class the fear of decline is present. The dream of home ownership becomes a nightmare for many Dutch people and pulls down the whole country. The fate of over-indebted citizens is becoming an election campaign theme.
For the DW TV-program Fokus Europa reporter Gunnar Köhne visits the Netherlands for a reportage about how the Dutch handle the problems people have with debts. He visits the North of Amsterdam and interviews people with debts and films at a centre where poor people in trouble are helped. At the local shopping centre people give their views and an spokesperson of a housing association explains how they handle rent arrears.