More than 100 people in Tauranga are considered "at risk" and in need of homes, according to the Ministry of Social Development - with the number still rising.
There were 160 people on the housing register in December last year - meaning they were waiting to be placed in a state house. In 2014, there were 91 and in 2015 there were 123.
According to the housing register, 104 people in Tauranga were classified as priority A, while 56 were classified priority B. Priority A were people or families considered "at risk" while priority B were those who had a "serious housing need".
Of those on the housing register, one and two-bedroom houses were most in demand to meet housing needs.
Social Housing and Ministry of Social Development deputy chief executive Scott Gallacher said their goal was to support people into long-term, sustainable housing.
"However, support was available to help people who need temporary accommodation while they looked at longer-term options."
The latest figures showed that the number of people on the social housing register had risen across New Zealand, not just in Tauranga, he said.
"The Ministry is focused on increasing the supply of both emergency and social housing."
Late last year, the Ministry said it would like to fund 150 houses in Tauranga with varying numbers of bedrooms.
Te Tuinga Whanau Trust director Tommy Wilson said they still dealt with many families on the breadline who needed homes.
The trust's social services manager, Piki Russell, said she believed the number would be higher still this month.
One of her social workers was currently working with 14 families classified as priority A. That did not include the number of families housed in Whare Tauranga at the moment, she said.
Tauranga Women's Refuge manager Angela Warren-Clark said they would almost get a call a day from a woman needing accommodation because she, and possibly her children, were homeless.
"It's still just desperation out there," she told the Bay of Plenty Times Weekend.
"A lot of people are devastated when we explain they don't meet the criteria, and sometimes angry.
"They ask, do I have to get smashed up to get into the safe house. It's heartbreaking."