Three-quarters of all break-ins in Tauranga now involve burglars targeting homes.
Latest statistics show burglars are now proportionately more active in residential areas than 15 years ago when house break-ins made up only half of all burglaries.
The trend towards homes and away from businesses and public buildings has gained momentum since the mid-1990s.
Western Bay's police area commander, Inspector Clifford Paxton, said there was now a significant number of opportunist burglaries from insecure premises, with cash, small electronic items and other easily removable goods being targeted.
The Bay of Plenty Times analysed Western Bay of Plenty crime statistics which showed the number of house burglaries had remained reasonably constant over much of the past 18 years, except for a downward blip in the early 2000s.