Taliaferro County is Georgia's least populous county, and Crawfordville is its only town and county seat. Every resident lives in a rural area, spread across about 195 square miles of East Central Piedmont country drained by tributaries of the Ogeechee and Little rivers.
Most homes here are modest single-family and detached houses, many of them ranch-style or split-level. That shapes what kind of lift makes sense. A one-story ranch may only need help at the porch steps, while a split-level can have short flights inside that a person climbs many times a day.
The 2020 Census counted 908 housing units in the county, and the housing stock is mostly older, single-story rural construction rather than multi-story suburban building. For a ranch-style home, the stairs that cause trouble are often outside: the front steps, a back porch or a carport entry. An outdoor-rated lift or a platform lift is usually the conversation at those homes.
Split-level houses are different. The flights are shorter, but there may be more than one, and they sometimes turn. A straight flight takes a straight rail, which is the simplest and quickest install. A flight with a landing or a turn needs a curved rail built to fit that staircase.
Because the county is entirely rural, residents who need a home-accessibility contractor or a medical equipment provider typically travel outside the county. That makes it worth planning ahead instead of waiting for a fall or a hospital discharge.
A good first visit measures every set of steps in and around the house, inside and out. That way one trip covers the whole picture, and you are not calling someone back from out of the county for a second set of stairs you forgot about.
Taliaferro County has a median age of 51.0, and 28.5% of residents are 65 or older, a share far above state and national norms. Among occupied homes in 2020, 72.5% were owner-occupied, so many older residents own the house they want to stay in.
Money is often tight. 2024 estimates put median household income at $52,500 and the poverty rate at 20.4%, well above the 12.5% national average. That is why it pays to call the programs below before deciding to pay the full cost out of pocket.
None of the programs listed below names stair lifts on its source page, so no one can promise coverage in advance. Several of them do fund home modifications or in-home services, and they are the right places to ask.
Start with the CSRA Area Agency on Aging, the regional office for older adults in Taliaferro County. You can reach the Central Savannah River Area Regional Commission AAA at (706) 210-2018, or the statewide toll-free line at (866) 552-4464. Veterans can talk with the United Veterans Service Office in Greensboro at (706) 453-7455 about VA housing grants.
Other statewide programs you may hear about include the Independent Care Waiver Program (ICWP), the Home Access Program, the Credit-Able Loan Program and VA Benefits for Veterans (HISA + Prosthetics). Ask the agency or veterans office whether any of them fits your situation.
A statewide, non-Medicaid program for Georgians age 60 and older (some parts from 55) that includes home modification and repair as an in-home service, though stair lifts are not named on the source page. Call (866) 552-4464 to reach it through the regional Area Agency on Aging.
The referral and case-management office for adults 60 and older and their caregivers in the Central Savannah River Area, including Taliaferro County, located at 3626 Walton Way Extension, Suite 300, Augusta. Stair lifts are not listed, but this is the office to contact to enroll in home-modification and in-home services; call (866) 552-4464.
Georgia Medicaid waivers that help frail older or disabled adults who meet nursing-facility level of care stay at home; the listed services do not include home modifications or stair lifts. Call (404) 657-5468 with questions.
A federal grant of up to $126,526 (FY2026) for veterans with severe service-connected disabilities to build, buy or modify a home they own or will own. Stair lifts are not named, though funds may go toward broader accessibility changes case by case.
A smaller VA grant of up to $25,350 (FY2026) for adapting an existing home for veterans or qualifying family members with certain service-connected disabilities. The source page does not mention stair lifts.
A grant-funded Center for Independent Living program serving people with disabilities in an area that includes Taliaferro County; its listed work is ramps, door widening, handrails, grab bars, shower chairs and handheld shower sprayers, not stair lifts. Call (706) 724-6262.
Older adults
3626 Walton Way Extension, Suite 300, Augusta, 30909
Veterans
113 N. Main St, Suite 117, Greensboro, 30642
The Georgia Home & Community-Based Services Program serves people 60 and older, with some parts open from age 55. People with disabilities of any age can also ask Walton Options for Independent Living at (706) 724-6262.
Often the problem is the entry steps rather than an inside staircase. In that case an outdoor-rated stair lift or a platform lift at the porch is the usual fit, and we measure those steps on the first visit.
Yes. A straight flight uses a straight rail, and a flight that turns or has a landing needs a curved rail. Some split-levels have more than one short flight, so each one gets measured.
The VA SAH and SHA grants fund home adaptations for veterans with qualifying service-connected disabilities, but their source pages do not name stair lifts. Call the United Veterans Service Office in Greensboro at (706) 453-7455 to ask about your case.
The official service list for CCSP and SOURCE does not include home modifications or stair lifts. Home modifications are listed under the separate Independent Care Waiver Program (ICWP).
Start with the Central Savannah River Area Regional Commission AAA at (706) 210-2018 or the statewide line at (866) 552-4464. They handle referrals for older adults and caregivers in the county.
Tell us about the stairs in your home and we will explain which lift fits, what it costs and how installation works.
