A homeless father of five is struggling to find a place for him and his family to stay, because of a lack of shelters that take men with children, it has been reported.

Joseph Cantu, of Pontiac, Michigan, says he was forced to leave his home last month and now lives inside a van after his wife abandoned him and their children.

Things went from bad for worse for Cantu when he was also fired from his job as a car polisher when he couldn't find anyone to watch his children, two of whom are at school.

Joseph Cantu, of Pontiac, Michigan was forced to leave his home last month and now lives inside a van after his wife abandoned him and their children

Things went from bad for worse for Cantu when he was also fired from his job as a car polisher when he couldn't find anyone to watch his children, two of whom are at school

'I never thought this would happen to myself anyway, but what bothers me the most is that they [his children] have to endure it as well,' FOX2 reported. 'Luckily, they're small enough they probably won't remember it.'

Since then, the father has been forced to find temporary sleeping accommodations.

'There's been several nights where we stayed inside [a] van,' he said. 'We pull inside a rest area sometimes to sleep. And then there's several nights that some people will donate money here and there, so we can sleep in a motel room.'

Many broken families in the same position often rely on a shelter to take them in but Cantu said he has had difficulty locating a shelter that will take his family in because he is a man.

The father has been forced to find temporary sleeping accommodations as well as his van

Many broken families in the same position often rely on a shelter to take them in but Cantu said he has had difficulty locating a shelter that will take his family in because he is a man

'We're waiting on a placement through a shelter, but unfortunately here in southeast Michigan, there's not many shelters for men with children,' he said.

'Focusing on this population of men is especially pertinent in relation to concerns about responsible fathering,' a 2007 study published by the National Council on Family Relations reports.

'Recent research on responsible fathering has highlighted the need to examine contextual influences on parenting. Fathers at the margins, such as homeless fathers, may experience unique constraints to responsible parenting.'