The number of Hawke's Bay residents receiving Work and Income benefits is up slightly, despite a downward trend nationally.
The number of benefit recipients was up 1.2 per cent in the region from the December 2015 quarter to the last quarter of 2016.
The WINZ data showed a national decrease in beneficiary numbers of 1.4 per cent over the same period.
Hastings Budget Advisory Service co-ordinator Kristal Leach said most clients at the service were beneficiaries.
She said February was usually the quietest time of year but the service saw 90 clients last month, 60 per cent of whom were on benefits.
"Mostly, when people come to see us, it is because they are in debt," Ms Leach added.
A number of the service's clients were facing rent arrears as well as other debts, including those to Work and Income.
A recent increase in rent and housing costs affected a number of clients, she said, both working and unemployed.
"We've seen many people on low incomes needing help with KiwiSaver hardship applications."
People are usually able to take money out of KiwiSaver only in cases of hardship whne they have rent or mortgage arrears.
The Hastings district had a rise in beneficiaries of just under 2 per cent between the last quarter of 2015 and the same quarter last year.
Central Hawke's Bay experienced the largest increase of any district in the region at 8 per cent.
Napier was the only district in the region where the number of residents receiving benefits decreased - by less than 1 per cent.
An additional 164 Hawke's Bay residents were receiving a benefit at the end of last year, more than a third of whom were living in Central Hawke's Bay.
Nationally, 4000 fewer people received benefits in the last part of 2016 than the same quarter of 2015.
There were 297,010 New Zealanders receiving some type of benefit in the last quarter of 2016.
Recipients of benefits such as Sole Parent Support and the Supported Living Payment were included in the data as well as those receiving Jobseeker Support.
More than half of beneficiaries in Hawke's Bay, a similar number to the rest of the country, have been receiving WINZ assistance for more than a year.
Ms Leach said the Budget Advisory Service normally saw people only after a major change in finances, such as when they first applied for a benefit.
"People who come to see us are often facing a change in circumstances, such as a job loss or relationship breakdown."