Crawford County is rural from end to end. The 2020 census counted its population as 100.0% rural, and most of its homes sit on farmland, along US 80/341 and state routes 7, 22, 42 and 96, or in and around Knoxville, the county seat, and Roberta, the only incorporated town.
Many of the county's 5,154 housing units are older farmhouses and in-town homes built long before anyone thought about accessibility. When the stairs in one of those houses become hard to manage, a stair lift is often a way to keep using the whole home without a full renovation or a move.
Crawford County's housing is mostly single-family homes, ranch-style homes and split-level homes, with some low-rise buildings. A lot of it was built without accessibility features, so stairs tend to be steep, narrow or broken into short flights.
A straight stair lift fits a single run of stairs with no turns. It is usually the simplest install and the most common choice for a multi-level farmhouse with one main staircase.
Split-level homes are different. They often have two or more short flights, and each one may need its own straight lift, or a curved lift may be needed if the stairs turn or have a landing.
The fall line runs roughly through the middle of the county. North of it, lots are hillier; south of it, the land flattens out into farmland.
On sloped lots in the north, homes are more likely to be split-level or to have steps up to the entry. An exterior ramp on that kind of grade can get long and costly, so an interior stair lift, or an outdoor lift for the entry steps, is often the more practical fix.
Flatter properties in the south may only need help at a porch or a single interior staircase. For someone who uses a wheelchair full time, a platform lift can be worth discussing, since it carries the chair rather than the rider alone.
Roughly a fifth of Crawford County residents are 65 or older, and the county skews older than the state average. Housing units here are 79.8% owner-occupied, so most families making this decision own the home and can approve a permanent install.
Renters can still get a stair lift in many cases, but the owner needs to agree before anything is mounted to the stairs. Ask early so the request does not hold things up.
Few programs name stair lifts outright, so it helps to know which ones do. Of the programs listed below, the Georgia Independent Care Waiver Program (ICWP) is the one that explicitly covers home modifications, and it serves adults ages 21-64 with severe physical disabilities or traumatic brain injury.
For people 60 and older, the best first call is usually the Middle Georgia Area Agency on Aging / Aging & Disability Resource Connection (ADRC) at (888) 548-1456. Its intake staff screen callers and refer them to programs that currently have capacity. The Middle Georgia Regional Commission AAA office in Macon can also be reached at (478) 751-6160.
Veterans should know that the VA HISA grant excludes stair glides, while the SAH and SHA grants fund home modifications without naming stair lifts either way. The Georgia Department of Veterans Service – Macon Field Service Office at (478) 751-6898 can help sort out which applies. Statewide lists also include the Home Access Program and the Credit-Able Loan Program, which are worth asking about when you call.
The regional gateway for adults 60+ and adults with disabilities in the 11-county Middle Georgia region, including Crawford County; it screens callers and refers them to waiver and in-home programs, and its listing does not mention stair lifts or home modifications. Call (888) 548-1456.
A Medicaid waiver for Georgians 65+ or disabled who meet a nursing-facility level of care and want to stay at home; its listed services do not mention stair lifts or home modifications. Apply through the local Area Agency on Aging/ADRC or call (866) 552-4464.
A Medicaid waiver for eligible Georgians 65+ (or younger with a qualifying disability) who meet nursing-facility level of care; its listed services do not mention stair lifts or home modifications, and it typically has a waitlist. Call (866) 552-4464.
A Medicaid waiver for adults ages 21-64 with severe physical disabilities or traumatic brain injury that explicitly lists home modifications among its covered services. Call (800) 982-0411.
Federal loans and grants for very-low-income rural homeowners to repair or improve a home or remove health and safety hazards, and all of Crawford County counts as rural. The source does not mention stair lifts specifically.
A lifetime VA benefit of up to $6,800 or $2,000, depending on disability status, for medically necessary home modifications. It does not cover stair lifts, since the VA excludes stair glides and porch lifts.
A VA grant of up to $126,526 (FY2026) for veterans with severe qualifying service-connected disabilities to buy, build or modify a home for accessibility. The VA does not name stair lifts as covered or excluded.
A VA grant of up to $25,350 (FY2026) for home modifications for veterans with certain service-connected disabilities, and the home may be owned by a family member. Stair lifts are not named in the VA description.
A Macon nonprofit serving people with disabilities of any age in central Georgia, including Crawford County, with resource connections and emergency durable medical equipment help. It does not list stair lift programs, so call (478) 741-1425 to ask what is currently offered.
Older adults
3661 Eisenhower Pkwy, Ste. MB102, Macon, 31206
Veterans
5566 Thomaston Road, Macon, 31201
For anyone 60 or older, start with the Middle Georgia Area Agency on Aging / Aging & Disability Resource Connection (ADRC) at (888) 548-1456. Staff there screen your situation and point you to whichever funded programs have openings.
Yes. The Georgia Independent Care Waiver Program (ICWP) serves adults ages 21-64 with severe physical disabilities or traumatic brain injury and lists home modifications as a covered service. Call (800) 982-0411.
Not through the HISA grant, which excludes stair glides. The SAH and SHA grants fund home modifications for veterans with qualifying service-connected disabilities but do not name stair lifts either way, so ask the Georgia Department of Veterans Service – Macon Field Service Office at (478) 751-6898.
The whole county is rural for USDA purposes, so location is not the barrier. The USDA Section 504 Home Repair Loan and Grant Program is for very-low-income homeowners, and its source does not name stair lifts, so confirm before counting on it.
That depends on whether the flights are separate or connected by a turn. Separate flights often get a straight lift on each, while stairs that turn or share a landing usually need a curved lift.
No. Under the Georgia SOURCE / Elderly and Disabled Waiver Program (EDWP) rules, a person can only be enrolled in one home and community-based waiver at a time, and EDWP typically has a waitlist.
Tell us about the stairs in your home and we will explain which lift fits, what it costs and how installation works.
