But experts say that healthy economy is fueling the surge in suburban homelessness. In an economic upswing there's a rise in housing costs. And when housing costs go up, accessibility goes down and more people become homeless. The working poor and those getting off welfare and into low-paying jobs discover that decent housing is out of reach. She said she's seen an estimated 20 percent increase in the suburban homeless population in the past three years at her Middletown shelter.
Warren County has none.
Hope House sprang from a small, four-bed place Mrs. Caudill opened in 1985 for homeless, pregnant girls in Lebanon. Area social-service officials say it truly has been a house of hope for the area's homeless. She rides with Middletown and Hamilton police looking for the homeless under bridges, in abandoned buildings and on the streets. When the need to expand Hope House was obvious in 1988, Mrs. Caudill was penniless but determined to follow the spiritual guidance she felt. She convinced Middletown real estate agent Harry Finkelman to let her use the old hotel rent-free to start.