Auburn's older county-seat streets, the newer ranch and two-story subdivisions around Garrett, Butler and Waterloo, and the farmhouses out in the rural townships all have stairs that age differently. A stairway in an original Auburn home is a different job from one in a split-level built a few decades later. That variety is the first thing we look at when someone in DeKalb County calls about a stair lift.
This page covers the eight towns we think of as the county's core: Auburn, Garrett, Butler, Waterloo, Ashley, Altona, St. Joe and Spencerville, plus the countryside between them. Below you will find how local homes affect the kind of lift that fits, and which state, federal and county programs are worth a phone call before you pay out of pocket.
Older multi-level homes with their original stairways are common here, especially in Auburn's older core and in farmhouses across the rural townships. Straight runs are the simplest and quickest to fit. Stairs that turn at a landing, wind, or narrow near the top usually need a curved rail built to the exact shape of the staircase.
Split-level homes bring their own puzzle: several short flights instead of one long one. Sometimes the answer is one lift on the flight used most, and sometimes it is more than one. Ranch-style homes often have no indoor stairs at all, but a basement stairway or a few entry steps can still be the problem worth solving.
Townhouses and walk-up apartments raise a different question. If you rent, or if a stairway is shared, the owner or association will need to approve an installation before any rail goes on the wall.
The county's terrain is low and rolling, with the highest point around 1,060 feet in the northwest, so long steep driveways are not the usual issue. The trouble spot tends to be the steps up to a porch or a side door, particularly on older farmhouses.
For those, an outdoor stair lift built to handle the weather is one option. For a wheelchair user, a vertical platform lift at the entry may work better than a seat. We look at the steps, the ground at the bottom and how the door opens before recommending either.
Most families here own their homes: 78.8% of housing was owner-occupied in 2020. Owners can usually decide on a lift without waiting on a landlord.
The county splits nearly in half between town and country, with 47.0% of residents in urban areas concentrated in Auburn, Garrett, Butler and Waterloo, and 53.0% in rural areas. If you live out in a township, in-home aging services and home-modification outreach may take more effort to reach you, so it helps to call the agencies below directly instead of waiting to be contacted.
No program on this page names stair lifts as a covered item, and two VA and state programs clearly do not pay for them. Several others do fund home modifications or accessibility work in general, so the right move is to ask each one directly whether a stair lift could qualify in your situation.
A good first call is Aging & In-Home Services of Northeast Indiana at (260) 745-1200, located at 8101 W. Jefferson Blvd., Fort Wayne 46804. They act as the local intake point and can screen for the PathWays waiver. Veterans should start with the Veterans' Service Office at 220 E Seventh St in Auburn, (260) 925-0131.
Rural homeowners with very low income should also look at the USDA repair loans and grants, after confirming the home sits in an eligible rural area. The full list of programs follows.
A Medicaid waiver for Indiana residents age 60+ who meet nursing facility level of care, with general limits of $2,982/month income and $2,000 in assets for a single applicant; it covers home modifications as a category but does not name stair lifts, and it has a waiting list. Call the PathWays helpline at (877) 284-9294 or screen through the local Area Agency on Aging.
The Fort Wayne-based Area Agency on Aging and resource center that handles intake, case management and PathWays screening; it is not a cash grant and its reviewed materials do not mention stair lifts. Call (260) 745-1200 to confirm DeKalb County coverage and ask about home-modification referrals.
Free short-term loans of items like shower chairs, raised toilet seats, walkers, canes and crutches; stair lifts are not included. Call (260) 925-3311, and ask about DeKalb Area Rural Transit (DART) and Information & Referral for other funding leads.
A Center for Independent Living offering information and referral, peer counseling, advocacy and skills training rather than cash grants; its sources do not mention stair lift funding. Call (260) 441-0551 to confirm it serves DeKalb County and to ask about accessibility equipment referrals.
Loans up to $40,000 at 1% for 20 years and grants up to $10,000 for very low income homeowners age 62+ in eligible rural areas; it funds accessibility changes like ramps but does not name stair lifts. Call (202) 690-0533 and confirm your property's rural eligibility first.
A competitive grant the county must apply for on behalf of low-income owner-occupants, at $5,000 per beneficiary; it allows ADA and select interior accessibility work but does not name stair lifts. Call (800) 457-8283 or DeKalb County government to ask whether an award is currently active.
An IHCDA grant limited to installing exterior ramps, so it does not pay for stair lifts. It may still help if entry steps are the main barrier.
Pays up to $6,800 for a service-connected disability or $2,000 for other disabilities toward permanent alterations like ramps and roll-in showers, but it explicitly excludes stair glides. Call the Veterans' Service Office in Auburn at (260) 925-0131.
Grants for veterans with qualifying severe service-connected disabilities, up to $126,526 for SAH and $25,350 for SHA in FY2026, used to modify a permanent home; stair lifts are not specifically named. Call (260) 925-0131 to ask about eligibility.
Older adults
8101 W. Jefferson Blvd., Fort Wayne, 46804
Veterans
220 E Seventh St, Auburn, 46706
The PathWays for Aging waiver covers home modifications as a service category for people 60+ who qualify, but the program does not name stair lifts specifically, and there is a waiting list. Call (877) 284-9294 or Aging & In-Home Services of Northeast Indiana at (260) 745-1200 to be screened and to ask.
No. The DeKalb County Council on Aging's equipment loan program covers items like shower chairs, walkers, canes and raised toilet seats, not stair lifts. They can still point you toward other help through Information & Referral at (260) 925-3311.
The HISA grant explicitly excludes stair glides. The SAH and SHA grants fund home modifications for veterans with qualifying severe disabilities but do not name stair lifts, so ask the Veterans' Service Office in Auburn at (260) 925-0131.
The USDA Section 504 program offers repair loans up to $40,000 at 1% and grants up to $10,000 for very low income homeowners 62+ in eligible rural areas. It names ramps and walk-in tubs, not stair lifts, so confirm both your property's eligibility and the use before applying. The number is (202) 690-0533.
Not at all, but it changes the plan. Each flight may need its own lift, or you may only need one on the flight you use every day. An in-home visit is the only way to know which makes sense.
The PathWays waiver and the Area Agency on Aging focus on people 60 and older. Adults with disabilities can also contact the League for the Blind and Disabled at (260) 441-0551 to confirm DeKalb County coverage and ask about referrals.
Tell us about the stairs in your home and we will explain which lift fits, what it costs and how installation works.
