Much of Fayette County outside Uniontown and Connellsville grew up between roughly 1880 and 1920 as coal and coke company patch towns. The two-story frame houses and rowhouse-style dwellings built for those workers still line streets in places like Leith-Hatfield, Brownsville, Masontown and Perryopolis, and most of them put the bedrooms and the bathroom upstairs.
Add in the hills along the Monongahela and Youghiogheny rivers and the mountains of the Laurel Highlands, and a lot of homes here have stairs both inside and out. This page walks through what that means for a stair lift in your house, and which local and state programs may help with the cost.
The housing stock across the county's 56 municipalities is old and mostly multistory. You'll find single-family homes, detached houses, row houses, walk-up apartments and split-level homes, but the common thread is a staircase between daily life and the bedroom or bath.
Many older frame houses and patch dwellings have a single straight run of stairs, which is usually the simplest and least involved lift to fit. Stairs with a landing, a turn or a winder at the top need a curved rail built to that staircase. Row houses can have narrow stairwells, so we measure width and headroom before recommending a model.
Split-level homes bring short runs between levels. Sometimes one lift solves the main trip, and sometimes the family decides which flight matters most.
Fayette County covers about 798 square miles in the southwestern corner of Pennsylvania, bordering Maryland and West Virginia along the Mason-Dixon line. The western side is rolling foothills and river valleys, while the east is steep, forested mountain country.
On sloped lots, the front walk, porch steps or a back entry can be as hard as the indoor staircase. Outdoor stair lifts are built for weather exposure and can cover exterior runs. Where a wheelchair user needs to get from yard to porch level, a vertical platform lift may be a better fit than a seat-style lift.
It helps to look at the whole route: car to door, door to first floor, first floor to bedroom. Fixing only the inside stairs can still leave someone stuck at the porch.
Out of 142,643 residents, 22.5% are 65 or older, and 73.5% of households own their homes. After the decline of coal and later steel, many families stayed in decades-old homes rather than moving, so a lot of long-tenured owners are now facing stairs they have climbed for years.
If that includes your parent, the VA grants listed below are worth a call before you pay out of pocket. The county's Veteran Affairs office is at 2 West Main Street, Uniontown 15401, phone (724) 430-1241.
Incomes in the county tend to be modest, so income-qualified programs matter. The Fayette County Whole-Home Repairs Program offers up to $50,000 per owner-occupied unit for households at or below 80% of Area Median Income, and the funds may be used to make a home accessible for someone with a disability.
For adults 60 and up, the Area Agency on Aging is the front door. It does in-home assessments and can screen for OPTIONS and the Community HealthChoices waiver. The Fayette-Greene-Washington AAA office is at 305 Chamber Plaza, Charleroi 15022, phone (724) 489-8083.
Other statewide resources include VA Benefits for Veterans (HISA + Prosthetics) and the PA Assistive Technology Foundation (PATF). None of the sources we used name stair lifts specifically, so ask each program directly whether a lift fits its home modification rules.
A Medicaid waiver for Pennsylvania residents 21 and older who meet nursing-facility level of care, with home modifications approved case by case when they improve accessibility or safety; stair lifts are not specifically listed. Call (877) 550-4227.
The gateway agency for adults 60 and older in Fayette, Greene or Washington County, offering in-home assessments and enrollment in OPTIONS, the CHC waiver and other funding; the source does not mention stair lifts directly. Call (724) 489-8080.
A state-funded in-home services program for residents 60 and older with no income cutoff but a possible sliding-scale copay; home modification is a supplemental service depending on local AAA funding, and stair lifts are not listed. Call (717) 783-1550.
A home modification program for people with disabilities of any age in Fayette, Greene and Washington Counties, with project-based funding that varies; stair lifts are not specifically mentioned. Call (724) 223-5115.
A federal grant of up to $126,526 (FY 2026 maximum) for veterans with qualifying service-connected disabilities to build, buy or modify a home for accessibility; stair lifts are not named in the source. Call (800) 827-1000.
A federal grant of up to $25,350 (FY 2026 maximum) to adapt an existing home owned by the veteran or a family member, for qualifying service-connected disabilities; stair lifts are not named in the source. Call (800) 827-1000.
A grant or forgivable loan of up to $50,000 per owner-occupied unit for households at or below 80% of Area Median Income, usable for accessibility work for people with disabilities; stair lifts are not specifically listed. Call (724) 437-1547.
Older adults
305 Chamber Plaza, Charleroi, 15022
Veterans
2 West Main Street, Uniontown, 15401
Often, yes. Many older frame houses and rowhouse-style dwellings have a straight staircase, which suits a standard rail. Narrow stairwells need measuring first, and stairs with a turn need a curved rail made for that staircase.
Exterior steps are common on sloped lots in Fayette County. An outdoor stair lift can handle porch or entry steps, and a vertical platform lift is an option when a wheelchair needs to reach the door.
Yes, possibly. The CHC waiver covers Medicaid enrollees 21 and older who meet nursing-facility level of care, and TRPIL serves people with disabilities of any age in Fayette, Greene and Washington Counties. Call TRPIL at (724) 223-5115.
If she is 60 or older, start with the Southwestern Pennsylvania Area Agency on Aging at (724) 489-8080. They do in-home assessments and can screen for OPTIONS, the CHC waiver and other funding.
The program allows funds to be used to make a home accessible for people with disabilities, up to $50,000 per owner-occupied unit, for households at or below 80% of Area Median Income. Ask the Redevelopment Authority at (724) 437-1547 whether a stair lift qualifies.
The Veteran Affairs office at 2 West Main Street in Uniontown, (724) 430-1241, is a local starting point. He can also call the VA at (800) 827-1000 about the SAH and SHA grants, which require a qualifying service-connected disability.
Tell us about the stairs in your home and we will explain which lift fits, what it costs and how installation works.
