From the Yakima River valley floor around Ellensburg and Kittitas to the mountain towns of Cle Elum, Roslyn, Ronald, Easton and Snoqualmie Pass, Kittitas County covers 2,333 square miles on both sides of the Cascade Range. A lot of the homes here grew out of ranching and irrigated farming, and many are older multi-story farmhouses or mid-20th-century houses with stairs between floors or up to a raised front door.
This page walks through how those homes tend to work with a stair lift, what living out of town means for an install, and which programs may help with the cost. If you are planning for yourself or for a parent, it should give you a clear idea of what to ask before anyone measures a staircase.
Most homes we see in the county fall into a few groups: single-family homes, duplexes, townhouses, walk-up apartments and split-level homes. Older farmhouses often have one long straight run between floors, which is usually the simplest fit for a straight stair lift.
Split-level homes are different. They have short flights between levels, and getting from the lowest floor to the bedrooms can mean two separate lifts or one curved rail that follows a landing. Townhouses and duplexes can go either way, so the layout of the turn matters more than the age of the building.
Before quoting, we look at stair width, any landing or turn, where the rail can end at the top, and whether there is an outlet nearby. Those details decide straight versus curved far more than anything else.
Many rural houses here were built with a raised entry, so the hardest stairs are sometimes the ones outside. An outdoor stair lift is built for weather exposure and can carry someone from the driveway or yard up to the porch.
When stairs outside are too steep or irregular for a rail, a platform lift may be the better answer, especially if a wheelchair is involved. We talk through both options at the visit so the inside and outside of the home are planned together.
About 57% of residents live in urban areas, mostly Ellensburg, the county seat. The other 43% live in dispersed rural areas, which means many older homeowners are a long drive from in-home service providers and installers.
For families in that situation, it helps to get exact stair measurements and photos early so the right rail is ordered the first time. Ask any installer how service calls work at your address, not just in town.
Roughly 45.2% of residents are homeowners, so many people in the county rent. A renter in a walk-up apartment, duplex or townhouse will need the owner's permission before a rail is mounted, and some programs below only serve homeowners.
The Kittitas County Veteran Services Program at 507 N Nanum St., Suite 117, Ellensburg, can be reached at (509) 933-8320 and is a good first stop for questions about VA housing grants.
No single program here names stair lifts as an automatic benefit except one loan. Northwest Access Fund lists stair lift installation as a covered home modification. The state COPES waiver and TSOA program, HopeSource's home rehabilitation grant and the VA grants cover home modifications in general terms, and each decides case by case.
For state programs, DSHS Home & Community Services can be reached at (509) 955-7344. ALTC Southeast Washington, the regional aging office at 3311 W. Clearwater Ave., Suite D-100, Kennewick, answers at (509) 735-0315. You can also ask them about other statewide options such as Community First Choice (CFC) and the Senior Citizens & People with Disabilities Property Tax Exemption.
A Medicaid waiver for residents 65 and older or adults with disabilities who meet nursing-facility level of care and want to stay home; environmental modifications are allowed, but stair lifts are not named and are decided case by case in the plan of care. Call the local HCS office at (509) 955-7344.
A state program for residents 55 and older who need help with two or more daily activities and are not Medicaid-eligible, with a one-time $250 limit in Step One and a $500 annual limit in Step Two. Minor home modifications are coverable, but stair lifts are not named, so ask your case manager at (509) 955-7344.
A nonprofit low-interest loan of up to $60,000 over up to 120 months for people with disabilities, including seniors with age-related limits, and stair lift installation is specifically listed. It is a loan, not a grant; call (206) 328-5116.
A grant from Kittitas County's community action agency in Ellensburg for low-income homeowners living in their own single-family home in rural areas, covering repairs and accessibility needs. Stair lifts are not named specifically, so call (509) 925-1448 to ask.
A federal grant of up to $126,526 (FY2026 maximum) for veterans with a qualifying serious service-connected disability to build, buy or modify a home. The source mentions ramps and wider doorways but does not name stair lifts.
A federal grant of up to $25,350 (FY2026 maximum) for veterans with a qualifying service-connected disability who do not meet SAH criteria, in a home they or a family member own. Stair lifts are not named on the source.
Helps SAH- or SHA-eligible veterans adapt a family member's home where they are living temporarily, up to $50,961 or $9,100 depending on eligibility (FY2026 maximums). Stair lifts are not named on the source.
An Ellensburg-based center offering free advocacy, skills training, referrals and peer support to people with disabilities in Kittitas, Douglas, Chelan, Yakima and Grant counties. It does not list a stair lift fund, but you can call (509) 492-5286 to ask about home-modification help or referrals.
Older adults
3311 W. Clearwater Ave., Suite D-100, Kennewick, 99336
Veterans
507 N Nanum St., Suite 117, Ellensburg, 98926
Possibly. TSOA serves Washington residents 55 and older who need help with two or more daily activities and are not Medicaid-eligible. Northwest Access Fund lends to people of all ages with disabilities. Call (509) 955-7344 about TSOA or (206) 328-5116 about the loan.
Northwest Access Fund is the only program here that names stair lift installation as covered. The others cover home modifications or accessibility needs in general and decide case by case.
You will need the property owner's permission before installation. Keep in mind that the HopeSource grant only serves homeowners living in their own single-family home in rural Kittitas County.
About 43% of county residents live in dispersed rural areas, often far from installers. Sending stair measurements and photos ahead of the visit helps get the right rail ordered, and it is worth asking how service calls work at that address.
Call the Kittitas County Veteran Services Program in Ellensburg at (509) 933-8320. They can help sort out whether the SAH, SHA or TRA grant fits, since none of them name stair lifts directly.
Not always. Some split-levels work with two short straight lifts, and others need one curved rail around a landing. It depends on the turn, the width and where the rail can stop at each level.
Tell us about the stairs in your home and we will explain which lift fits, what it costs and how installation works.
