Athens County packs a lot of different houses into 508 square miles. In the city of Athens, older multi-story buildings crowd around the historic Ohio University campus. Out in the 14 townships, around Nelsonville, The Plains, Glouster, Albany, Chauncey, Coolville and the other villages, you find standalone older single-family homes, many of them sitting on sloped lots in the hills.
That range shapes how we approach every stair lift job here. A narrow staircase in an in-town house calls for a different plan than a hillside homestead outside Trimble or Buchtel. Below we explain what the local homes and terrain mean for your stairs, and which programs serving Athens County residents may help with the cost.
The historic core of Athens has a lot of older, multi-story construction, and older staircases are often narrow. Width matters because a stair lift rail and folded seat take up part of the tread, and the people still walking the stairs need room to pass.
Turns matter too. A straight staircase with no landings can usually take a straight rail, which is the simpler install. If the stairs turn at a landing or wind as they go up, a curved rail built to fit that specific staircase is usually the answer.
Townhouses and walk-up apartments add another question: who owns the stairs. In a walk-up, the staircase may be shared, so the building owner needs to be part of the conversation before anything is mounted.
Across the county you will also find split-level homes and ranch-style homes alongside the older single-family houses. A split-level often has short runs of stairs between levels, and each run needs to be looked at on its own. A ranch may have most of its living space on one floor, so the stairs in question are often the ones to a basement or the ones at the front door.
Older rural homes outside the town centers can have their own structural surprises. That is why we check the staircase, the wall and the floor at the top and bottom before recommending a lift, rather than quoting from a photo.
Athens County sits in the Unglaciated Allegheny Plateau, with steep hills and typical relief of 150 to 400 feet cut by stream valleys. Outside the flatter areas along the Hocking River, many homes are built on sloped lots.
On a sloped lot, the hard part of getting into the house is often outside: a long set of porch or yard steps. An outdoor stair lift or a platform lift can be an option there. A ramp is another, but on a steep lot a ramp can get long, so it is worth comparing a ramp with a lift for your specific site.
If the inside stairs and the outside steps both cause trouble, we look at both together so you are not solving one problem and leaving the other.
About 42.0% of households in Athens County own their home, and in the city of Athens the owner-occupied share is 26.0%. That matters because a stair lift is mounted to the stairs, and a renter needs the owner's permission first.
It also matters for funding. Several programs listed below require the applicant to own the home, including the Buckeye Hills home accessibility program and the USDA Section 504 repair program. If your parent rents, ask about each program's rules before you apply.
The county's median household income is $56,001 and its poverty rate is 21.5%, so many families here look for help with the cost. Be aware that none of the programs below names stair lifts as a covered item, and the VA HISA grant specifically excludes stair glides.
Your best first call for an older parent is usually Buckeye Hills Regional Council, the Area Agency on Aging for southeast Ohio. Its PASSPORT waiver lists minor home modifications and home medical equipment among covered services, and a case manager can tell you whether a stair lift could fit a care plan.
Veterans should start with the Athens County Veterans Service Office at (740) 592-3216, which helps with VA claims. Rural homeowners age 62 or older with very low income may also look at the USDA Section 504 program.
An Ohio Medicaid waiver for people age 60 and up who are Medicaid eligible and need hands-on help with daily activities; it lists minor home modifications and home medical equipment, though stair lifts are not named, so ask whether one could be approved in your care plan. Athens County residents apply through Buckeye Hills Regional Council at (800) 331-2644.
A home accessibility and minor repair program for homeowners age 60 and up, and people under 60 with disabilities, covering items such as entry ramps, grab bars, tub-to-shower swaps and doorway widening; stair lifts are not listed, and renters are not eligible. Call (800) 331-2644.
Loans up to $40,000 at 1% fixed interest and grants up to $10,000 for very-low-income homeowners age 62 and up in eligible rural areas, which includes most of Athens County outside the city of Athens; grants must remove health and safety hazards. Stair lifts are not listed among covered items, so confirm your address and project with USDA.
A VA grant of up to $6,800 or $2,000 for home structural changes tied to a covered disability for veterans enrolled in VA health care. It does not cover stair lifts: the VA lists stair glides and porch lifts as excluded removable equipment.
Up to $126,526 (FY2026) for veterans who own or will own their home and have certain severe service-connected disabilities; stair lifts are not specifically named, but the grant funds structural adaptations under an approved plan. The VA number listed is (800) 827-1000.
Up to $25,350 (FY2026) toward adapting a home the veteran or a family member owns, for qualifying disabilities such as loss of use of both hands or certain respiratory injuries; stair lifts are not specifically named. The VA number listed is (800) 827-1000.
The county office in The Plains helps Athens County veterans with VA claims, transportation and other assistance; it does not list stair lift funding itself but is a good starting point for HISA, SAH and SHA applications. Call (740) 592-3216, Monday through Friday, 8am to 4:30pm.
A nonprofit that lends equipment such as portable ramps for up to 90 days at no charge, plus daily-living aids; stair lifts are not listed among loanable items. Call (740) 689-1494 to confirm what is available in Athens County.
Older adults
1400 Pike St., Marietta, 45750
Veterans
88 North Plains Rd., Suite 102, The Plains, 45780
Often it can, but width and turns decide what fits. Older in-town homes vary a lot, so we measure the staircase, check the walls and floors, and leave room for others to use the stairs before recommending a straight or curved rail.
Possibly, through the PASSPORT waiver for people age 60 and up who qualify for Ohio Medicaid. PASSPORT covers minor home modifications and home medical equipment, but stair lifts are not named, so ask Buckeye Hills Regional Council at (800) 331-2644 whether one could go in the care plan.
The Buckeye Hills Home Accessibility Improvements Program also serves people under 60 with disabilities who own their home. Stair lifts are not on its list of covered modifications, so call (800) 331-2644 to ask about your situation. SOCIL at (740) 689-1494 is another local resource for people with disabilities.
No. The VA lists stair glides as removable equipment that HISA does not cover. The SAH and SHA grants fund structural adaptations for certain service-connected disabilities, and the Athens County Veterans Service Office at (740) 592-3216 can help you look into them.
Many homes in the county sit on sloped lots, so this comes up often. An outdoor stair lift or a platform lift can handle long exterior steps, and on a steep site a lift can be more practical than a long ramp. We compare both during the home visit.
A renter needs the owner's permission because the lift is mounted to the stairs. Some funding sources, including the Buckeye Hills accessibility program and USDA Section 504, require the applicant to own the home, so check each program's rules first.
Tell us about the stairs in your home and we will explain which lift fits, what it costs and how installation works.
