Larimer County runs 2,634 square miles, from the Eastern Plains near the Wyoming border to the mountains around Estes Park and Rocky Mountain National Park. The stairs in a home here can be very different from town to town. An 1880s house in Fort Collins' Old Town, a split-level in Loveland, and a cabin road outside Red Feather Lakes each call for a different kind of lift.
This page walks through how the county's homes and terrain shape stair lift choices in Fort Collins, Loveland, Berthoud, Wellington, Timnath, Estes Park, Laporte and Red Feather Lakes. It also lists the local, state and VA programs that may help with the cost, along with the phone numbers to call.
Fort Collins grew up on the original fort site, decommissioned in 1867, and its Old Town core still has homes dating from the 1880s onward. Houses from that era usually have interior stairs as a standard feature, and those stairs are often narrow, steep, or turn at a landing.
A single straight run is the simplest job: a straight stair lift mounts to the treads, not the wall, and fits most standard staircases. Stairs that turn, curve, or have a landing midway need a curved rail built to that staircase. We measure every turn before recommending one or the other.
Split-level homes are common across the county. They trade one long staircase for several short ones, so a person may face a few steps to the kitchen and a few more to the bedrooms. Sometimes one lift on the main flight solves most of the problem, and sometimes each short flight needs its own look.
Townhouses tend to have one straight interior stair, which usually suits a straight lift well. Walk-up apartments are harder, because the stairs are often shared and the building owner has to approve any installation. Renters should talk with the owner before planning anything.
West of the Fort Collins and Loveland core, homes sit in places like Poudre Canyon, Big Thompson Canyon and the edges of Roosevelt National Forest. Winter ice and snow on steps and walkways are everyday realities there, and the trip to services can be long.
For these homes the front steps or deck stairs can be as big a hazard as anything inside. An outdoor stair lift built for weather exposure is one option, and a vertical platform lift can work where steps are too short or irregular for a rail. Because service calls take longer in the mountains, it pays to plan the right setup the first time.
Larimer County has 286,633 residents, and 15.2% are 65 or older. About 58.7% of residents are homeowners, and the county had 158,769 housing units as of 2020, so a large share of older residents own the multi-level homes they plan to stay in.
That matters for paying, since several VA grants are open to veterans who own their homes, and the Larimer County Veterans Service Office in Fort Collins can help sort out which one applies.
Money is often the deciding factor, especially in older agricultural towns and in Estes Park, where many residents live on fixed incomes. No single program here names stair lifts as a covered item, so plan on calling and asking directly before you commit.
The main options are the Colorado Medicaid EBD waiver's Home Modification Benefit, the VA housing grants, USDA Section 504 repair loans and grants for rural addresses, the Larimer County Office on Aging voucher programs, and the Larimer Home Improvement Program. Statewide, the Assistive Technology Act Program of Colorado (AT Partners) and the Colorado Senior Property Tax Exemption (Senior Homestead Exemption) are also worth asking about. Details for each are below.
This Medicaid waiver benefit pays for specific home modifications in an eligible client's existing home, up to a $14,000 lifetime maximum, for people 65 and older with a functional impairment, people who are blind, or adults 18-64 with a physical disability or HIV/AIDS. The source does not mention stair lifts by name, so ask your case manager whether one qualifies.
HISA pays up to $6,800 or $2,000 lifetime, depending on disability status, for medically necessary home alterations, but it specifically excludes stair glides and porch lifts. Call the Larimer County Veterans Service Office at (970) 498-7390 to ask about a stair lift through VA Prosthetic & Sensory Aids Service (PSAS) instead.
SAH provides up to $126,526 (FY2026 maximum) for veterans with severe service-connected disabilities who own or will own the home; the source does not name stair lifts. Call the Larimer County Veterans Service Office at (970) 498-7390.
SHA provides up to $25,350 (FY2026 maximum) to adapt a home owned by a veteran or qualifying family member with certain service-connected disabilities; stair lifts are not named in the source. Call the Larimer County Veterans Service Office at (970) 498-7390.
Rural homeowners with income at or below 50% of area median income can borrow up to $20,000 at 1% over 20 years, and owners 62 or older who cannot repay a loan may get grants up to $7,500, with a combined maximum of $27,500. Stair lifts are not itemized, and your address must fall in a USDA-eligible rural area.
These individual vouchers serve adults 60 and older and adults with disabilities living in Larimer County; the source does not mention home modifications or stair lifts. Call the Larimer County Office on Aging at (970) 498-7750 to ask whether a voucher could apply.
LHIP offers a low-interest repair loan for owner-occupied homes in Larimer County, with no published cap, rate or income limit, and no mention of stair lifts. Call (970) 667-3232 to confirm the terms.
Older adults
1501 Blue Spruce Dr., Fort Collins, 80524
Veterans
200 W. Oak Street, 5th Floor, Fort Collins, 80521
Not through the HISA grant, which excludes stair glides. A stair lift may come through VA Prosthetic & Sensory Aids Service (PSAS) when clinically prescribed. The Larimer County Veterans Service Office at 200 W. Oak Street, 5th Floor, Fort Collins, (970) 498-7390, can help you start.
The EBD waiver's Home Modification Benefit covers specific home modifications up to a $14,000 lifetime maximum, but the source does not name stair lifts. Ask your waiver case manager whether a lift would be approved for your home.
Possibly. Unincorporated and mountain communities such as those around Estes Park, Red Feather Lakes and Livermore may fall inside USDA-eligible rural areas, while much of incorporated Fort Collins and Loveland likely does not. Check your exact address on the current USDA eligibility map.
The Office on Aging vouchers serve adults 60 and older and also adults with disabilities in Larimer County. The EBD waiver covers adults 18-64 with a physical disability or HIV/AIDS. Call the Larimer County Office on Aging at (970) 498-7750 with questions.
Often, yes. Each short flight is measured separately, and many families start with a lift on the flight used most, such as the one to the bedrooms. Flights that turn need a curved rail.
Yes, outdoor stair lifts are built for exterior steps, and a vertical platform lift is another option for short or uneven steps. In canyon and mountain homes, the outside steps are often the first place we look.
Tell us about the stairs in your home and we will explain which lift fits, what it costs and how installation works.
