From mill-era cottages in Carrollton and Bowdon to two-story subdivision houses around Villa Rica and Temple, Carroll County's homes put stairs in a lot of different places. Some are steep and tight with winders at the turn. Others are wide and straight but lead to the only full bedroom in the house.
This page walks through what those homes mean for a stair lift, how the county's hills and rural roads shape the job, and which Georgia programs may help with the cost. It covers Carrollton, Villa Rica, Fairfield Plantation, Temple, Bowdon, Mount Zion, Whitesburg and Roopville.
Roughly a third of the county's housing, 16,838 units, was built before 1980, and 3,941 homes date to 1939 or earlier. Those pre-war houses tend to have steep, narrow staircases, often with winders where the stairs turn. A straight rail will not follow a winder, so these homes usually need a curved lift built to the exact shape of the stairs.
The county's biggest building wave came in 2000-2009, with 11,854 units. Many of those are two-story houses with the primary bedroom upstairs. Their stairs are often a single straight run, which is the simplest and quickest kind of stair lift to install.
Most housing here is one-unit detached, 37,986 of 49,255 units, with another 4,816 mobile homes. Only about 3,263 units sit in buildings of five or more, so most lift work in the county happens inside a private house.
Carroll County sits in the Piedmont on a drainage divide, with the western two-thirds draining to the Upper Tallapoosa River and the eastern third toward the Middle Chattahoochee and Lake Harding. The result is rolling, hilly ground and a lot of split-level and basement-entry homes.
A split-level can mean two short flights instead of one long one. Sometimes that takes two separate straight lifts, and sometimes one curved rail that runs past the landing. Where a basement entry or a hillside lot puts steps outside the door, an outdoor lift with weather-rated parts may be the answer, and a platform lift can work when someone uses a wheelchair.
About 54.4% of residents live in rural areas, and many older homeowners are on acreage well outside town. When the nearest services are a long drive away, being able to use the whole house safely matters more.
Interstate 20 runs through Villa Rica and Temple in the north. Service trips from Carrollton to Bowdon, Whitesburg, Mount Zion and Roopville go over state routes, US 27 and US 78, so it helps to plan installs and maintenance visits ahead.
Owner-occupancy is high in the county, with 33,764 of 45,427 occupied units lived in by their owners. That means most families can decide on a lift without asking a landlord.
Both groups have specific programs worth checking before you buy, covered below.
The median household income is $73,714, but the poverty rate is 15.4%, so cost is a real hurdle for many seniors on fixed incomes. Rising home values, with a median of $255,100, give some households more room to plan a retrofit.
For residents 60 and older, the place to start is the Three Rivers Area Agency on Aging, which handles Georgia's home and community-based services for Carroll County. The Three Rivers Regional Commission AAA office in Griffin can be reached at (706) 845-4560. Ask about home modification funding, waitlists and whether a stair lift fits within it.
Other statewide programs to ask about include the Home Access Program, the Credit-Able Loan Program and VA Benefits for Veterans (HISA + Prosthetics). Veterans can also contact the Georgia Department of Veterans Service – Carrollton Field Service Office at 180 Martin Drive in Carrollton, (678) 423-4970.
Serves Georgians 60 and older and lists home modification and repair as a covered category, which can include stair lifts decided case by case. Call (866) 552-4464, or contact the Three Rivers Area Agency on Aging to check local funding.
The local intake office for older adults and caregivers in Carroll and nine nearby counties; its listing does not mention stair lifts, but it handles home modification and waiver intake. Call (866) 854-5652.
A statewide information and referral line for benefits counseling and eligibility screening; it does not fund home modifications itself and does not list stair lifts. Call (866) 552-4464.
A Medicaid waiver for recipients ages 21-64 with a severe physical disability or traumatic brain injury who meet nursing-facility level of care, and it covers home modifications. Call (800) 982-0411.
A Medicaid waiver for elderly or disabled recipients who meet nursing-facility level of care; its service list does not name home modifications or stair lifts, so confirm case by case. Call (866) 552-4464.
A VA grant of up to $126,526 (FY2026 max) for veterans with certain severe service-connected disabilities to build, remodel or buy an adapted home; stair lifts are not named specifically. Call (800) 827-1000.
Older adults
120 North Hill St., P.O. Box 96, Griffin, 30224
Veterans
180 Martin Drive, Carrollton, 30117
Usually, yes. Pre-war homes often have tight stairs with winders, which call for a curved lift made to the shape of your staircase rather than a straight rail.
The Independent Care Waiver Program covers home modifications for Georgia Medicaid recipients ages 21-64 with a severe physical disability or traumatic brain injury who meet nursing-facility level of care. Call (800) 982-0411.
Start with the Three Rivers Area Agency on Aging at (866) 854-5652, or the Three Rivers Regional Commission AAA office at (706) 845-4560. They handle intake for home modification help and Medicaid waivers.
The state's service list for those waivers does not name home modifications or stair lifts. Confirm your case with the ADRC at (866) 552-4464 or the Area Agency on Aging.
The Georgia Department of Veterans Service – Carrollton Field Service Office is at 180 Martin Drive in Carrollton, (678) 423-4970. You can also ask the VA at (800) 827-1000 about the Specially Adapted Housing grant and HISA.
It depends on the layout. Two short flights may need two straight lifts or one curved rail, and outside steps to a basement entry may need an outdoor lift.
Tell us about the stairs in your home and we will explain which lift fits, what it costs and how installation works.
