An Auckland Councillor is concerned at what she's calling a heartbreaking increase in homelessness

Data provided to the council's Community Committee shows the number of people sleeping in cars, streets and local parks, has risen by 53 per cent in the past four months.

While emergency housing numbers have plummeted, the number of people in transitional housing and on the public wait list have grown.

Manurewa Papakura Councillor Angela Dalton says there's a number of misconceptions about homeless people which need to stop.

She says assumptions that people are lazy or entitled aren't correct.