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(CBS4) Each evening at nightfall, a woman driving a Lexus SUV pulls into a Broward County church parking lot.

The woman is not there for a church service or to work. She's there to catch a few hours of sleep.

And she's not alone. She has two beloved dogs sleeping beside her.

Trish's story—she asked us not to use her last name—remains an anomaly. However, there are other homeless people sharing her fate.

Trish worked as a real estate agent in Tampa and Georgia who suffered through the bursting of the real estate bubble. With her money dwindling, she took an opportunity in South Florida that did not pan out. She soon found herself living in her car, getting food at soup kitchens and desperately looking for work.

"I'm almost dumbfounded that I'm in this position," she said.

The reason Trish remains on the streets instead of a homeless shelter is because of her two collies, Maui and Kihe. Homeless shelters in Broward do not allow pets. But Trish said she could not imagine her life without them.

"They're my life," she said. "I live my life for these dogs. I've had this same discussion with own brother in California. He said it's time to put them in shelter and adopt them out. I said, 'I'll tell you what, when you adopt out your granddaughter then I'll adopt out my dogs.'"

Trish is looking for work but finding work while caring for two animals is a challenge. She is volunteering and hopes to find a job where she can move into an apartment with her pets. She is one of many who rode high on the real estate market during the boom but felt the effects when the market tanked.

"The real estate market is great when it's up but when it's down you go to rock bottom," she said.

Trish said she lived off savings the last three years but when the market dried up and the opportunities dwindled she found herself with few options. Her SUV is packed with her possessions. A dog crate is filled with her professional work clothes and she keeps her photo albums in a plastic bag. The photos reveal a much different woman—a woman swimming with dolphins at Sea World and surrounded by horses and other animals.

Broward County homeless advocates say Trish's story is not uncommon. They are seeing a marked increase in the amount of homeless people living on the city's streets. A homeless census taken at the end of January showed the number of homeless people on the streets increased 14% over the past two years.

There are waiting lists for entry to Broward's temporary shelters although faith-based organizations have stepped in to help fill the void, according to advocates.

Richard Barboza and John Nilsen know Trish. They also know her plight.

Barboza and Nilsen are both disabled and both unemployed. Barboza lost his job two years ago and has struggled ever since. Nilsen lost his sales job due to the recession. The two friends have spent the past six weeks sharing the back of Barboza's SUV.

"There are some people out there who like this type of life," Barboza said. "It is their life. It's not for us."

When we met Barboza and Nilsen they did have a roof over their heads. Barboza's disability check will pay for a motel room for a couple of weeks.

The stability will give Nilsen a chance to send out résumés.

"I'll flip burgers. I'm not too proud to do anything," Nilsen said. "I'm as broke as they come right now, so anything is better than where we're at."

Living in one's car is a blessing and a curse. It allows them to travel to aid organizations for food and clothing. It also helps in the job search. The tough part is finding a parking space at night where police will let them stay.

All three of these people admit choices they made played a role in their current situations.

But while each of them is homeless they are not hopeless.

"Everything will work out eventually," Nilsen said. "It's a temporary thing, difficult, but temporary."

Trish is trying to make the best of her struggle. Despite living in her car, she was eager to share her story and her experiences. She hopes one day to be back living on the beach in St. Petersburg with her dogs by her side.

"I'm used to being on top, but I'm like, what did I do wrong?" she said. "It's just circumstances, so I can either cry about it, get upset about it or keep a smile on my face and know that there's gonna be a better tomorrow."

(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)

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