Homelessness doesn't always look like this.

New research indicates New Zealand has some of the worst rates of homelessness in the developed world.

At the last census in 2013 there were roughly 41,705 Kiwis who were "severely housing deprived" - about 1 per cent of the population.

Using data from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), a Yale study has compared the statistics to those from other developed nations, which put New Zealand on top of the list on a per-capita basis - although the researchers note significant comparability issues thanks to the differing ways each country measures homelessness.

ALDEN WILLIAMS / FAIRFAX NZ 1497 people were sleeping rough or in their cars in 2013, but a much higher number were in other temporary arrangements.

Labour's housing spokesman Phil Twyford said this research shows we have "the worst level of homelessness in the world".

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He also believes the number will have gotten far higher in the last four years.

CHRISTEL YARDLEY/FAIRFAX NZ A woman staying in a motel funded by an emergency housing grant. The government spent $12.6m on the grants in the last three months.

"We know that the housing market is much tougher now. There is an acute housing shortage, Housing New Zealand's waiting list as blown out, and anecdotally people like the Salvation Army are saying they have never seen homelessness this bad."

Figures released on Thursday showed the Government spent a record $12.6m in the last three months paying for short-term seven-day motel stays for those in desperate need, up from $8.8m in the first three months of the year.

And new numbers out on Friday showed there were currently 5353 suitable applicants on a waitlist for social housing, up from 3877 at the same time last year. Almost 3700 of those were top priority and considered "at risk".

Almost half of those on the list are Maori and over 2400 applicants had children.

Both the Greens and Labour argue that instead of spending money on motel stays the Government should prioritise building more state houses.

"Thousands of families are in desperate need and are stuck waiting for a home. That is a sign of massive Government failure," Green Party co-leader James Shaw said.

STUFF Labour's Phil Twyford: "We have the worst level of homelessness in the world."

"Meanwhile, National is still continuing its programme of selling off state houses, while at the same time part-nationalising the motel industry. It makes absolutely no sense."

Twyford said it was "bloody unbelievable".

"It's not a housing policy it's an admission of failure, the ultimate in short-termism."

FAIRFAX NZ Green co-leader James Shaw: "Thousands of families are in desperate need and are stuck waiting for a home."

Deputy Prime Minister Paula Bennett, who was social housing minister until late-2016, told the AM Show on Friday morning that "in hindsight" the Government could have acted earlier on emergency housing.

"We had no idea it would ever be this big. No Government had ever picked up the bill for this. No Government has ever funded emergency housing," Bennett said.

Social Housing Minister Amy Adams said the Government had stepped up the response to the rising need.

MONIQUE FORD/STUFF Deputy PM Paula Bennett: "We had no idea it would be this big."

"Winter is seeing an increase in the number of people needing support. Our primary focus is getting help to those who need it, and while demand has increased, help is there for those who need it," Adams said.

"Part of the drive behind the higher demand is rising rents affecting those with low incomes. We're aware of this pressure, which is why the Government is lifting Accommodation Supplements as part of our $2 billion Family Incomes Package.

"More social housing is also needed, and the 13,500 new social houses in Auckland and hundreds of others we're building across the country will help.

CAMERON BURNELL/FAIRFAX NZ Social Housing Minister Amy Adams: "While motels are not ideal, they are warm and dry, and preferable to families sleeping rough during the coldest months of the year."

"While motels are not ideal, they are warm and dry, and preferable to families sleeping rough during the coldest months of the year."

But Twyford said the Government were just making empty promises.

"After last year's winter of misery Paula Bennett promised hundreds of millions of dollars and 1400 additional housing beds. In the 10 months that have followed they have only increased the number by something like 300.

"In the mean time they continue to run down the stock of state housing," Twyford said.

"The amount they have taken out of Housing New Zealand in taxes and dividends could have built 5000 more state houses.

Labour say there are 2000 fewer state houses than there were when National took office.

ARE WE REALLY THE WORST?

The OECD data that showed New Zealand as the worst country in the world for homelessness has some comparability issues.

Different studies treat homelessness differently. The "1 per cent" figure for New Zealand includes those who are living in temporary arrangements such as a severely crowded friend's house or a boarding house.

Just 4197 - or 0.1 per cent of the population - were literally sleeping in the streets or in their cars when the 2013 census was taken.

Yet New Zealand is not alone in using this wider definition of homelessness: Australia, Germany, and many other OECD nations also look at more than just those sleeping rough.