Kosciusko County has over 100 natural lakes, and a lot of its homes were built to face them. Around Lake Wawasee, Winona Lake and Webster Lake, cottages often have stairs that drop to a basement level or down to the water. Out in the farm townships near Mentone, Etna Green and Claypool, older farmhouses put the bedrooms upstairs.
We install stair lifts across all 16 towns in the county, from Warsaw and Syracuse to North Webster, Pierceton and Leesburg. This page walks through how the homes here affect which lift fits, and which programs an older homeowner or their family can call about the cost.
The lake-cottage housing around Lake Wawasee, the largest natural lake wholly within Indiana at 3,060 acres, comes with its own stair problems. Many cottages have an inside staircase to a lower level and another set of steps outside leading to the lake frontage.
Inside stairs that run in one straight line can usually take a straight stair lift, which rides on a rail bolted to the treads, not the wall. Outside steps call for an outdoor-rated lift built to handle weather. If a set of steps turns or has a landing partway down, a curved rail is the usual answer.
Some cottages are lived in year-round and some only part of the year. Tell us how the home is used so we can talk through what makes sense for the outdoor stairs between seasons.
Much of the county's housing is detached single-family homes. That includes older farmhouses on rural acreage and ranch and split-level homes from the county's mid-to-late-20th-century growth.
Split-level homes tend to have short runs of stairs between floors. Each short run can often take its own straight lift, or a curved rail can carry someone past a turn. Older farmhouse staircases are often narrow or steep, so we measure width and the angle before recommending a model.
In Warsaw, the Warsaw Courthouse Square Historic District and the streets around it have older multi-story homes. Those staircases often have turns or landings, which points toward a curved lift built to the exact shape of the stairs.
Not everyone in the county lives in a house. Townhouses, walk-up apartments and low-rise buildings also make up part of the local housing mix.
A townhouse owner can usually add a stair lift to the inside stairs the same way a homeowner would. In a walk-up apartment or a shared stairwell, the building owner has to agree first. Where a wheelchair needs to go up a few steps, a platform lift is sometimes a better fit than a seat lift.
About 15.5 percent of county residents are 65 or older, and 62.7 percent are homeowners. Owning the home makes a stair lift simpler, since there is no landlord to ask.
The Kosciusko County Veterans Service Office at 121 N Lake Street in Warsaw can be reached at (574) 372-2436 to talk about VA benefits, though as explained below, not every VA grant pays for stair lifts.
The clearest public path is Indiana Medicaid. The PathWays for Aging Waiver, for people 60 and over, lists home modifications as a service, and a source on the program names stair lifts among them. People 59 and under use the Health & Wellness Waiver instead.
The CHOICE Program lists environmental modifications but does not name stair lifts, so ask directly. REAL Services (PSA 2) in South Bend, at (574) 284-2644, is the aging office listed for this area and a place to start questions about both.
Be careful with VA funding. The HISA grant explicitly excludes stair glides. SAH and SHA grants do not name stair lifts either. The state also lists the INDATA Alternative Financing Program (AFP) as a statewide resource you can ask about. The full list is below.
Indiana Medicaid waivers for people who meet nursing-facility level of care, with home modifications, including stair lifts, as a covered service. Call (574) 233-8205 to ask about applying.
A state program for people 60 or older or with a disability; it lists environmental modifications but does not mention stair lifts by name. Assets may not exceed $250,000 (with a $20,000 exclusion); call (800) 986-3505.
An Area Agency on Aging for seniors 60 and over that serves as an intake point for waiver and CHOICE benefits; it does not list its own stair lift program. Call (574) 233-8205.
Federal repair loans and grants for very-low-income homeowners who live in the home, with grants limited to applicants 62 or older who cannot repay a loan. Stair lifts are not mentioned in the source, so ask before counting on it.
A lifetime VA grant of up to $6,800 or up to $2,000 depending on the disability, for structural changes with medical justification. It explicitly excludes stair glides, so it does not pay for a stair lift.
VA grants of up to $126,526 (SAH) or $25,350 (SHA) for veterans with certain severe service-connected disabilities who own or will own the home. Stair lifts are not mentioned in the source; the examples given are ramps and widened doorways.
A center for independent living that serves people with disabilities in Kosciusko County and ten other counties; stair lift funding is not mentioned. Call (260) 441-0551 for referral and advocacy help.
A 0% interest repair loan for low- to moderate-income homeowners, limited to roof and HVAC or furnace replacement, so it does not cover stair lifts. Applications are currently closed; the number is (574) 269-4104.
Older adults
1151 S. Michigan St., South Bend, 46601
Veterans
121 N Lake Street, Warsaw, 46580
Many lake cottages in the county have stairs down to the lake frontage. Those steps need an outdoor-rated lift, and steps that turn or have a landing need a curved rail. We measure the run before recommending one.
The PathWays for Aging Waiver, for people 60 and over, covers home modifications, and a source on the program lists stair lifts among them. You must meet nursing-facility level of care and have income no greater than 300% of the maximum SSI amount. Call (574) 233-8205 to ask.
Since the July 1, 2024 split, people 59 and under use the Health & Wellness Waiver instead of PathWays. The CHOICE Program also accepts people of any age who have a disability, and The League for the Blind & Disabled at (260) 441-0551 serves Kosciusko County.
The HISA grant explicitly excludes stair glides, and SAH and SHA grants do not name stair lifts. The Kosciusko County Veterans Service Office in Warsaw at (574) 372-2436 can review what other VA benefits may apply.
No. Its home repair program covers only roof and HVAC or furnace replacement, and applications are currently closed.
No. Each short straight run can often take its own straight lift, or a curved rail can carry a rider around turns. We look at the layout and measure each run first.
Tell us about the stairs in your home and we will explain which lift fits, what it costs and how installation works.
