The Dublin Simon Community has said homelessness is spiralling out of control and the goal of ending long-term homelessness by 2016 is unachievable.
In its annual review, the charity has warned that temporary emergency accommodation is increasingly becoming long-term for many homeless people.
More than 1,400 people are forced to seek shelter in emergency accommodation in Dublin every night, according to the charity.
It believes there is little hope for these people of moving on to somewhere of their own in the long term, with at least 50% of people now stuck in emergency shelter for more than six months.
The problem, it said, lies in the collapse of the private rented and social housing market, with additional housing also slow to come on stream.
It stated the 2014 target of 1,100 tenancies in the capital has also been reduced by 30%.
Despite a 54% increase in its accommodation capacity last year, the Dublin Simon Community has seen a sharp increase in its early morning counts of those sleeping on the streets.
