Topic : Troubled Teens

I have a 17 year old son.  My son's biological father pretty muchly disappeared after I divorced him over 16 years ago.  I remarried when my son was 4 and have been married to my sons "Dad" ever since.  He is the only real "dad" my son knows.  My husband and I are both very successful in our careers and have a lovely home, a boat, nice cars and have always given our son everything he needs.  We are loving parents, not abusive mentally, physically nor emotionally.  We are not alcoholics or drug users.  We include our son in just about everything.  Our son has always struggled in school, and has been tested for learning disabilities such as ADD, etc. He is very active, artistic and smart in so many ways.  Now to the problem:  He has always been a little defiant or stubborn as they use to call it in the "old days", but, last summer, he became so out of control and defiant that his dad asked him to move out and he moved in with my brother.  At the end of summer he moved back home and he was doing really well, even in school, then all of a sudden about 4 months ago, it started again, he started skipping school, lying, not doing his school work, failing classes, becoming more and more defiant, to the point that when confronted with skipping school, etc...he became confrontational with his dad and even took a swing at his dad. Thank God I stepped in between them (it was pure HE--.)  We decided he had to move out again and he went to live with his Uncle again.  He got a job, finished his Junior year and was doing pretty good.  A few weeks ago, it started again, he just stopped coming home (to his Uncles) staying out all night, not calling, bringing people to stay the night and not asking,going through my brothers personal belongings, doing pretty muchly whatever he wanted.  His uncle finally grounded him and told him that he was pretty muchly "housebound" except for work.  The day before he had told his Uncle  he wanted to go to Bass Lake for the "day" with his friends and his Uncle said OK.  This was before he got in trouble.  The next thing was he went ahead and went to Bass Lake and not for the "Day" but, stayed the night and just left his Uncle a note that he would be back Thursday.  My brother finally had a fit and said he has had enough and is going to kick him out.  He has run out of places to go now.  Even though my heart is breaking, I can't let him back home, nor will his dad.  We have talked to our counselor and he said sometimes you have to let them hit bottom and that we should have our son tested for drugs and possibly "bipolar disorder"due to his "ups and downs" in his behavior, etc..  We did drug test him last year and it was negative and so did the school in April.  I am at my witts end. My heart is breaking I don't want to see my Only child go down such an ugly road, but, I don't know what to do.  I don't know where he can go and it seems like everywhere I turn they say that unless he does something "illegal" they can't help us.  How do you let your child become homeless at 17. Please help.....does anyone have any resources that they have had success with.  The thought of my son out in this world without a place to stay is unbearable and I know he can not make it financially on his own he only makes minimum wage.