From the old pottery streets of East Liverpool to the frame houses of Salem, Lisbon and Leetonia, a lot of Columbiana County homes were built when two stories with bedrooms upstairs was simply how houses were made. Those homes have held families for generations, and many of the people who raised kids in them still live there.
The land adds its own challenge. Between the Little Beaver Creek hills in the north and the Ohio River bottomlands along the southern edge, plenty of houses sit on slopes with entry steps outside and level changes inside. This page walks through what that means for a stair lift and where to look for help paying for one across the county's 21 towns.
Much of the county's housing went up during the pottery, steel and rail boom years around East Liverpool and Salem. The typical result is a two-story frame or brick house with every bedroom on the second floor. When climbing those stairs gets hard, the choice often comes down to moving or adding a lift.
If the staircase runs in one straight flight, a straight stair lift is usually the simplest fit. Older homes sometimes have a landing, a turn at the top or a narrow winding section, and those call for a curved rail built to the exact shape of the stairs. We measure on site before recommending either one.
The county covers 532 square miles of hilly, river-valley country in the northeastern corner of Ohio's Appalachian region. That terrain shows up in the split-level and raised-ranch hillside houses common here, where you may face a short run of steps just to get from the kitchen to the bedrooms.
Short interior runs between levels can often take a straight lift. Steps outside, from the driveway to a raised front door or down to a walkout, may need an outdoor lift built to handle the weather. For someone who uses a wheelchair, a platform lift can be the better answer at an entry where a ramp would be too long for a sloped lot.
About 22.5% of the county's 54,485 residents are 65 or older, and 65.3% are homeowners. In practice that means many long-time owners are deciding how to stay in houses they know well. Owning the home matters, because several of the programs below require it.
If that includes you or a parent, the Columbiana County Veterans Service Office at 7989 Dickey Drive, Suite 1, in Lisbon can help sort through VA benefits. Call (330) 424-7214.
Start with age and income, since those decide which door to knock on. For residents 60 and older who need help with daily tasks and qualify financially, the PASSPORT waiver includes a home modification benefit. Those 59 or younger can look at the Ohio Home Care Waiver, which offers the same benefit category. Both are handled locally through Direction Home Eastern Ohio (AAA 11) in Youngstown, reachable at (330) 505-2262.
County programs for people 60 and older and the USDA repair program for rural homeowners are worth a call, though their published materials do not name stair lifts. For veterans, know up front that the VA HISA grant specifically excludes stair glides. The full list with phone numbers is below.
An Ohio Medicaid waiver for people 60 or older with a qualifying functional impairment and low income, and it lists home modification as a covered service, capped at $15,000 per individual per calendar year. Call Direction Home of Eastern Ohio at (330) 505-2300.
A Medicaid waiver for people 59 or younger who need help with daily tasks and qualify financially; home modification is a covered service under the same $15,000 yearly cap. Call (330) 505-2300.
A levy-funded county program that provides in-home services to residents 60 and older, with a co-pay that may depend on services and income. Its published description does not mention stair lifts or home modifications, so call (330) 424-1471 to ask.
Helps homeowners 60 and older who meet income guidelines with health and safety repairs such as fixing steps and installing handrails and grab bars. Stair lifts are not listed; call (330) 424-4013.
A center for independent living serving people with disabilities in Ashtabula, Columbiana, Mahoning and Trumbull counties with skills training, referral and advocacy. It is not a funding source and does not list stair lifts; call (330) 372-3325 for referrals.
Very-low-income rural homeowners can borrow up to $40,000, and those 62 and older who cannot repay may get grants up to $10,000 for removing health and safety hazards. Stair lifts are not named; call the Ohio office at (614) 255-2400.
A VA grant of up to $6,800 or $2,000 lifetime for medically needed changes like entrances and roll-in showers. It does not cover stair lifts, as stair glides and porch lifts are excluded; call (800) 827-1000.
Provides up to $126,526 toward a permanent home, or up to $50,961 to adapt a family member's home, for veterans with certain serious service-connected disabilities. Stair lifts are not named in the program description; call (800) 827-1000.
Offers up to $25,350 toward a permanent home, or up to $9,100 for a temporary residence, for veterans with qualifying disabilities such as loss of use of both hands. Stair lifts are not named; call (800) 827-1000.
Older adults
2801 Market St., Youngstown, 44507
Veterans
7989 Dickey Drive, Suite 1, Lisbon, 44432
The PASSPORT waiver and the Ohio Home Care Waiver both list home modification as a covered service, up to $15,000 per person per calendar year. You need a qualifying functional impairment and low income. Call Direction Home of Eastern Ohio at (330) 505-2300 to start an assessment.
Yes, the Ohio Home Care Waiver is for people 59 or younger who need help with daily tasks and qualify financially. Western Reserve Independent Living Center at (330) 372-3325 can also point people with disabilities toward other resources.
No. The HISA program specifically excludes removable equipment such as stair glides and porch lifts. Veterans can ask the Columbiana County Veterans Service Office in Lisbon at (330) 424-7214 about other VA options.
Many hillside and raised-ranch homes here have entry steps outdoors. An outdoor stair lift or a platform lift can work at those entries, depending on the number of steps and whether a wheelchair is involved. We measure the site first.
The CAACC Senior Home Repair Program covers step repairs, handrails and grab bars for homeowners 60 and older, but it does not list stair lifts. Columbiana County Senior Services also serves people 60 and older. Call (330) 424-4013 or (330) 424-1471 to ask what applies to your home.
Tell us about the stairs in your home and we will explain which lift fits, what it costs and how installation works.
