Marathon County stretches across about 1,545 square miles of land, making it Wisconsin's largest county by land area. It takes in the county seat of Wausau on the Wisconsin River, suburbs like Weston, Rib Mountain, Kronenwetter, Rothschild and Schofield, and smaller places such as Mosinee, Marathon City, Edgar, Athens, Colby, Abbotsford, Spencer, Stratford, Hatley, Unity and Maine.
The homes vary as much as the towns. Near downtown Wausau you find multi-story houses from the lumber and paper milling boom with their original staircases, while outlying townships lean toward newer single-story construction. This page covers what that mix means for a stair lift and where people here can look for help paying for one.
Wausau grew during its 19th- and early-20th-century lumber and paper milling boom, and plenty of houses from that era still stand. The Andrew Warren Historic District, listed on the National Register of Historic Places, includes the 1917 Kickbusch residence, and the city also has Prairie School houses associated with Frank Lloyd Wright.
Houses like these often keep their original interior stairs. Some run in one straight flight, which usually takes a straight stair lift on a rail fixed to the treads. Others turn at a landing or curve, and those need a curved rail built to match that exact staircase.
Before quoting anything, we measure the stairs, check the width at the top and bottom, and look at where the rail can mount. In an older home that visit matters, because no two staircases from that period are quite the same.
Across the county you will also see single-family homes, townhouses, walk-up apartments, split-level homes and ranch-style homes. Each one raises a different stair question.
A split-level often has two short flights, and a short straight lift on each can be simpler than one long rail. A ranch-style home may be all on one floor but still have a basement stair to the laundry or a few steps at the entry. Townhouses usually have a full straight flight between floors. In a walk-up apartment, the stairs may be shared, so the building owner has to be part of the conversation before anything is installed.
Wausau averages about 64.3 inches of snow a year, with a January mean daily temperature around 14.8°F and a record low of -40°F. Icy or snow-covered exterior steps are a real fall hazard for older residents through a long stretch of the year.
That is one reason many families here start with an indoor lift, so that daily life can happen on safer, dry stairs. Where the outside steps are the problem, an outdoor stair lift or a platform lift may be worth discussing, and we can talk through how either would handle the local winters at your door.
Roughly 43.4% of the county lives in rural areas, according to the 2020 census. On a farm or rural property, a lift that keeps someone off a slick porch or basement stair can be the difference between staying home and moving.
Most stair lifts are paid for privately, but it is worth checking the programs below first. For many of them the source we reviewed does not say whether stair lifts are covered, so the honest answer is to call and ask about your specific situation.
The local front door is the Aging and Disability Resource Center. The Marathon County ADRC can be reached at (715) 261-6070, and it is the enrollment gateway for Wisconsin Medicaid, Family Care and IRIS. Statewide, it is also worth asking about the Community Options Program (COP), WisLoan (WisTech Alternative Loan Program) and the WHEDA Home Improvement Loan Program (HILP).
The Marathon County Veterans Service Office is at 1100 Lake View Drive, Suite 300, Wausau, 54403, phone (715) 261-1141. Keep in mind that the VA HISA grant specifically excludes stair glides, so ask the office which other VA benefits might apply.
A self-directed Medicaid waiver for Wisconsin adults 18 and older who meet a nursing-home level of care screen and live at home or in certain community settings; the source we checked does not list stair lifts as covered. Call (888) 515-4747, or start through the local ADRC.
A Medicaid managed long-term care program for frail elders and adults with disabilities who pass the Long-Term Care Functional Screen; the source does not list home modifications or stair lifts as a benefit. Medicaid Member Services is at (800) 362-3002, and Marathon County enrollment runs through the ADRC.
Free information, benefits counseling and referrals for older adults and adults with disabilities in Langlade, Lincoln, Marathon and Wood counties; it has no stair lift benefit of its own listed but is the gateway to Medicaid, Family Care and IRIS. Call (888) 486-9545 and press 3 for Benefits.
Repair 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, which generally includes Marathon County outside the City of Wausau; stair lifts are not named in the sources checked. Call (800) 414-1226.
A VA grant for medically necessary home alterations with a $6,800 or $2,000 lifetime maximum depending on disability status; it does not cover stair lifts, since it excludes stair glides and porch lifts.
Grants for veterans with qualifying severe service-connected disabilities, up to $126,526 for SAH and $25,350 for SHA in FY2026; the source mentions ramps and widened doorways but does not name stair lifts.
Income-targeted home improvement loans for owner-occupants within Wausau city limits, funded through the city's CDBG allocation; stair lifts were not confirmed as a covered improvement. Call (715) 261-6500.
The local Habitat affiliate supports critical home repairs and ramp building, but the source does not describe a stair lift program or income limits. Call (715) 343-4212 to ask about current scope and eligibility.
Older adults
1000 Lake View Dr., Suite 200, Wausau, 54403
Veterans
1100 Lake View Drive, Suite 300, Wausau, 54403
Often, yes. Many older homes in and around Wausau still have their original interior stairs, and a straight flight takes a straight rail while a turn or landing needs a curved rail made for that staircase. We measure on site before recommending either.
Not through the HISA grant, which explicitly excludes stair glides and porch lifts. The SAH and SHA grants do not name stair lifts either way, so call the Marathon County Veterans Service Office at (715) 261-1141 to ask what might apply.
Marathon County outside the City of Wausau is generally eligible for USDA Rural Development programs. The Section 504 program offers repair loans, and grants up to $10,000 for homeowners age 62+ with very low income; call (800) 414-1226 to ask whether a stair lift would qualify.
Start with the ADRC. The Marathon County ADRC is at (715) 261-6070, and ADRC-CW benefits counseling is at (888) 486-9545, press 3. They handle enrollment for Medicaid, Family Care and IRIS.
Wausau averages about 64.3 inches of snow a year, and icy outside steps are a serious fall risk. Some families move daily routines indoors with an interior lift, while others need an outdoor or platform lift at the entry; we can go over both at a home visit.
Tell us about the stairs in your home and we will explain which lift fits, what it costs and how installation works.
