Bulloch County sits on Georgia's coastal plain, and most of it is flat. That is why so many homes around Statesboro, Brooklet and Portal are single-story, ranch-style houses, which are usually easier to adapt for someone who is having trouble getting around.
Not every home here is on one level, though. Duplexes, townhouses, walk-up apartments and low-rise buildings are all part of the mix, and a few steps up to a porch can be just as hard as a full staircase. This page walks through what that means for a stair lift and where to look for help paying for one.
A ranch-style house often has no indoor staircase at all. The trouble spot is usually the entry steps, which can call for an outdoor stair lift or a platform lift rather than an indoor unit.
Townhouses and duplexes tend to have a single straight run of stairs between floors. A straight stair lift is the simplest fit for that layout and mounts to the stair treads, not the wall.
Stairs that turn at a landing, which show up in some walk-up apartments and older two-story houses, need a curved rail built to the exact shape of the staircase. We measure on site before quoting anything.
Statesboro is the county seat and home to Georgia Southern University. Its 2020-census housing stock was 14,206 units with an 11.9% vacancy rate, and that stock mixes long-time owner-occupied homes with student and rental housing.
The county's median age is young at 28.9, but 12.0% of residents were 65 or older in the 2020 census. If your parent rents, talk with the landlord before installing anything, since a stair lift attaches to the steps.
The county was 54.9% urban and 45.1% rural in the source we used. A lot of families live well outside Statesboro's center, on land where higher ground carries longleaf pine and live oak and lower spots turn to wetland.
For rural homes, outdoor lifts at the porch or back door are common requests. Distance to installers and repair contractors can be longer out in the county, so it helps to plan a visit ahead rather than wait until the stairs become impossible.
No single program here pays for stair lifts outright. The VA's HISA grant specifically excludes stair glides, and the other programs below do not mention stair lifts by name, so coverage has to be checked case by case.
A good first call for them is the Statesboro Veterans Field Service Office at 3A West Altman Street, Statesboro, (912) 871-1104.
For older adults and people with disabilities, the Coastal Georgia Regional Commission AAA at 1181 Coastal Way in Darien handles intake at (912) 262-2960. It can screen for Medicaid waivers and point you to other local help.
A lifetime VA grant of up to $6,800 for a service-connected disability, or $2,000 for other eligible disabilities, for fixed structural changes prescribed by a VA provider. Stair glides are explicitly excluded; call (800) 827-1000.
VA grants of up to $126,526 (SAH) or $25,350 (SHA) for veterans with specific severe service-connected disabilities to buy, build or adapt a home they own or plan to own. Stair lifts are not listed by name; call (800) 827-1000.
Repair loans up to $40,000 at 1% fixed interest for very-low-income rural homeowners, with grants up to $10,000 for those 62 and older who cannot repay a loan. Stair lifts are not mentioned by name; call (706) 552-2541.
The aging agency serving Bulloch County for adults 60 and older and adults with disabilities, offering referrals, case management and screening for SOURCE and EDWP. It does not list a stair lift fund; call (800) 580-6860.
A Medicaid waiver for people who need a nursing-home level of care, covering adult day care, personal care, home-delivered meals and respite care. Home modifications and stair lifts are not listed; call (866) 552-4464.
A Medicaid waiver for Georgians 65 and older, or younger with qualifying disabilities, who meet nursing-home level-of-care standards; waitlists are common. Stair lifts and home modifications are not listed; call (866) 552-4464.
A city home-repair program for income-qualified Statesboro homeowners that has renovated 43 owner-occupied houses and last took applications in 2024. Eligible repairs are not spelled out, so check current availability directly with the city.
Older adults
1181 Coastal Way, Darien, 31305
Veterans
3A West Altman Street, Statesboro, 30458
Not through HISA, which excludes stair glides. SAH and SHA grants cover home adaptations for certain severe service-connected disabilities but do not name stair lifts, so ask the Statesboro Veterans Field Service Office at (912) 871-1104.
The Coastal Georgia Area Agency on Aging also serves adults with disabilities, and SOURCE and EDWP accept younger people who meet disability and level-of-care rules. Start with (912) 262-2960.
It can help. Most of Bulloch County outside Statesboro's core counts as rural for the USDA Section 504 program, which offers repair loans and, for homeowners 62 and older, grants.
Yes. Entry steps to a porch or back door are often the real barrier, and an outdoor stair lift or platform lift can handle them.
The official pages for SOURCE and EDWP list adult day care, alternative living services, personal care, home-delivered meals and respite care. Neither mentions stair lifts or home modifications.
Tell us about the stairs in your home and we will explain which lift fits, what it costs and how installation works.
