Linda Smith has set out Oxford City Council's response after the number of applicants on its housing register reached 4,068.
The total includes 2,035 applications for one-bedroom homes and 1,761 for two- or three-bedroom properties. The authority is receiving an average of 160 new applications a month.
More than 500 households at risk of homelessness were placed in temporary accommodation during 2025-26, while 996 households received additional preference on the register because of overcrowding.
Oxford's four-year housing programme aims to provide 1,632 affordable homes, including 1,072 for social rent. Current proposals include developments at Sandy Lane, Northfield and Bertie Place.
The council has also advocated a Greater Oxford authority, arguing that access to more land could support 40,000 homes by 2040, including 16,000 affordable and social homes. That remains a proposal rather than an agreed delivery programme.
Smith is Oxford's Labour cabinet member for housing and communities. The city council is under no overall control, and the figures describe continuing demand rather than a new housing allocation.
