Cheboygan County stretches across 885 square miles of Michigan's northern Lower Peninsula. About 170 of those square miles are water, and most people live outside town, in and around Cheboygan, Indian River, Tower and Wolverine. Many homes here are older, modest houses that went up long before anyone planned for aging in place.
That matters when stairs start to get hard. A stair lift can keep a bedroom, a bathroom or a basement laundry in use without a move. This page walks through how local homes affect the type of lift you need, and which offices to call about paying for it.
Cheboygan's housing is mostly older and working-class in character. Near Main Street (M-27), the downtown still has early-20th-century buildings, including the 1913 Carnegie library and the former Opera House that now holds City Hall. Houses from that era often have narrow staircases, tight turns and landings that were never meant for equipment.
A single straight run of stairs usually takes a straight stair lift, which mounts to the treads, not the wall. If the staircase turns, has a landing in the middle or winds near the top, you are likely looking at a curved lift built to the shape of your stairs. We measure first so you know which one fits before you decide anything.
Across the county you will find single-family homes, detached houses, split-level homes and low-rise buildings. Split-level homes often have two or three short flights instead of one long one. Each flight may need its own lift, or the layout may suit one lift better than another, so a walk-through matters.
The city's housing vacancy rate was 14.4% at the 2020 census, which fits the share of seasonal and vacation homes you see in a Great Lakes shoreline city. If a parent splits time between a main house and a lake place, it is worth deciding which home needs the lift most, or whether both do.
According to the 2020 census, 78.8% of county residents live in rural areas. Out in the country, the hard part is often the porch, deck or entry steps, not just the stairs inside. An outdoor stair lift is built for weather and can handle a set of exterior steps leading up to the door.
For someone who uses a wheelchair, a platform lift may make more sense than a seat. We can talk through both after seeing the steps and the space at the top and bottom.
In Cheboygan County, 27.1% of residents are 65 or older, and 70.2% own their homes. That is a lot of people who want to stay in a house they already own.
None of the programs listed below name stair lifts specifically in the sources we checked, so coverage is not guaranteed. Still, several fund home modifications or accessibility work, and a call can tell you whether a lift fits your situation. The best first call for most older residents is NEMCSA, the Region 9 Area Agency on Aging, at (989) 356-4600. Its Northeast Michigan Community Service Agency AAA office is at 2375 Gordon Rd., Alpena, 49707, phone (989) 356-3474.
Veterans can start with Cheboygan County Veterans Services at 870 S. Main Street, Room 122, Cheboygan, 49721, phone (231) 627-8833. Statewide, you may also hear about the MI Choice Waiver Program, MI Coordinated Health (formerly MI Health Link), the MSHDA Property Improvement Program (PIP) and VA Benefits for Veterans (HISA + Prosthetics). Ask the local offices which of these apply to you.
A state Medicaid waiver for people 18 and older who meet nursing-facility level of care, with 2026 limits of $2,982/month income and $9,950 in countable assets. It includes Environmental Modifications (Accessibility Adaptations) set by your care plan, though stair lifts are not named; call (989) 358-4740.
USDA Rural Development offers very-low-income rural homeowners repair loans up to $40,000 at 1% for 20 years, and grants up to $10,000 for those 62 or older who cannot repay a loan. Accessibility work is listed only as possibly covered and stair lifts are not named; no phone number was available from the source.
Grants for veterans and service members with qualifying service-connected disabilities, up to $126,526 (SAH) or $25,350 (SHA) in FY2026, for a home the veteran or a family member owns. The VA gives ramps and wider doorways as examples and does not list stair lifts; Cheboygan County Veterans Services at (231) 627-8833 can help you apply.
The local aging office for residents generally 60 and older, offering homemaking, personal care, respite care and home-delivered meals. No stair lift or home modification program is listed, but it is the intake point that can screen you for MI Choice and other funding; call (989) 356-4600.
Older adults
2375 Gordon Rd., Alpena, 49707
Veterans
870 S. Main Street, Room 122, Cheboygan, 49721
The MI Choice Medicaid Waiver includes Environmental Modifications (Accessibility Adaptations), but stair lifts are not named on the NEMCSA page. Whether one is covered depends on your person-centered care plan. Call (989) 358-4740 to ask.
MI Choice is open to adults 18 and older who meet nursing-facility level of care and the 2026 income limit of $2,982/month and asset limit of $9,950. The NEMCSA aging services generally serve people 60 and older.
Cheboygan County qualifies as rural for the USDA Section 504 program. Loans go to very-low-income homeowners, and grants of up to $10,000 require being 62 or older and unable to repay a loan. Stair lifts are not named as an eligible item, so ask before counting on it.
Start with Cheboygan County Veterans Services at 870 S. Main Street, Room 122, Cheboygan, phone (231) 627-8833. They can help with the VA Disability Housing Grants, which require a qualifying service-connected disability.
Yes, in most cases. A staircase with a turn or middle landing usually needs a curved stair lift made to fit those stairs. We measure in person to confirm.
Outdoor stair lifts are made for exterior steps and weather. For a wheelchair user, a platform lift may be the better fit, depending on the space at the top and bottom.
Tell us about the stairs in your home and we will explain which lift fits, what it costs and how installation works.
