Between LaBelle and Clewiston, many homes sit on large agricultural-zoned lots, and most of them are single-story ranch houses or manufactured and mobile homes. That changes the stair lift conversation here. In Hendry County, the steps that cause trouble are often the ones outside: up to a raised front door, onto a porch, or into a mobile home.
We serve all seven towns in the county: Clewiston, Port LaBelle, LaBelle, Montura, Harlem, Fort Denaud and Pioneer. This page walks through which kind of lift fits the homes we see here and which local programs and offices to call about cost.
A single-story ranch home usually has no indoor staircase at all. If someone in that house struggles, the problem tends to be two or three entry steps, and an outdoor stair lift or a vertical platform lift is the usual answer.
Manufactured and mobile homes sit up off the ground, so getting in and out means climbing a set of exterior steps. A platform lift can carry a person, or a person in a wheelchair, from the yard up to door level without a long ramp across the lot.
Two-level detached houses and low-rise buildings are where indoor lifts come in. A straight staircase takes a straight rail, which is the simplest install. Stairs with a turn or a landing need a curved rail built to fit that staircase.
Hendry County covers about 1,153 square miles of inland South Florida along the southwest shore of Lake Okeechobee. Many homes are spread out on rural lots, so the lift often lives outdoors next to a porch or a mobile home entry.
An outdoor unit is built for exposure, with a weather cover for the seat and controls. When we visit, we look at the steps, the ground at the bottom, where power can come from, and how a person will get from the car to the lift.
About 14.9% of county residents are 65 or older, and 72.0% of households own their home. Owners can generally make changes like a rail or a platform without asking a landlord first.
Hendry County Veteran Services in LaBelle is the local place to start on VA questions, and VA care is available at the LaBelle VA outreach site (United Way building) and the Lee County VA Clinic in Cape Coral.
No program listed below names stair lifts as a covered item, so it pays to ask direct questions. Florida's Statewide Medicaid Managed Care Long-Term Care benefit lists home modifications for accessibility, and the Area Agency on Aging for Southwest Florida serves residents 60 and older. For veterans, the HISA grant specifically excludes stair glides and porch lifts.
Two other Florida options are worth asking about: the FAAST New Horizon Loan Program and the Florida Homestead + Senior Additional Homestead Exemption. Call the AAA for Southwest Florida (PSA 8) in Fort Myers at (239) 652-6900 for help sorting out what applies to your situation.
A Medicaid long-term care benefit for people 65+ (or 18+ and disabled) who need a nursing facility level of care, with a 2026 income limit of $2,982/mo and an asset limit of $2,000 for a single applicant. It lists home modifications for accessibility but does not name stair lifts; call (800) 963-5337.
Home and community-based care for Hendry County residents age 60 and older. Public materials do not say whether stair lifts or home modifications are covered, so ask when you call (866) 413-5337.
A VA grant for structural home changes for veterans with a service-connected or compensable disability, with a lifetime maximum of $6,800 or $2,000 depending on the disability. Stair glides and porch lifts are on its exclusion list, so it does not cover stair lifts; the VA number is (877) 222-8387.
Older adults
2830 Winkler Ave, Ste. 112, Fort Myers, 33916
Veterans
110 Broward Avenue, LaBelle, 33935
Maybe not indoors. If the trouble is the steps up to the front or back door, an outdoor stair lift or a vertical platform lift is usually the better fit.
Yes. Mobile and manufactured homes are common across Hendry County, and a platform lift or an outdoor stair lift can be set up at the entry steps.
Not through the HISA grant, which lists stair glides and porch lifts as excluded items. Hendry County Veteran Services at (863) 675-5250 in LaBelle can talk through other VA benefits.
The Area Agency on Aging for Southwest Florida serves Hendry County residents 60 and older. Its materials do not say whether stair lifts are covered, so call (866) 413-5337 or the Fort Myers office at (239) 652-6900 and ask.
The SMMC LTC benefit lists home modifications for accessibility but does not name stair lifts. You need a CARES assessment showing nursing facility level of care and must meet the income and asset limits; call (800) 963-5337.
Tell us about the stairs in your home and we will explain which lift fits, what it costs and how installation works.
