Robertson County stretches across 865 square miles of east-central Texas, from Hearne, its largest city, to the county seat in Franklin and on to Calvert and Bremond. Census data counts the county as entirely rural, even though it sits inside the College Station-Bryan metropolitan area.
Many homes here are older, modest ranch-style and site-built houses, along with manufactured homes, walk-up apartments and low-rise buildings. That mix shapes which kind of stair lift makes sense, and this page walks through the options and the local offices that can help with the cost.
The older rural houses common in this county usually have straight, single-run staircases when they have an indoor stair at all. A straight stair lift is the simplest fit for that layout. The rail mounts to the stair treads, not the wall, so older walls are rarely a problem.
Curved staircases show up mostly in larger, newer homes, and those are less common here. If your stairs turn or have a landing partway up, a curved rail is built to match, and we measure that on a home visit.
For a lot of households, the hardest climb is not inside. Manufactured homes and raised ranch houses often have steps up to the front door or porch. An outdoor stair lift built for weather exposure, or a platform lift for someone using a wheelchair, can handle that climb.
In walk-up apartments and low-rise buildings, the stairs are often shared. Any lift there needs the building owner's approval first, so it helps to ask before scheduling a measurement.
For those households, a stair lift is often the step that lets someone keep using a second floor or the front door without help.
Veterans have their own set of benefits to check, covered below. The Robertson County Veterans Service Office in Hearne is the local place to start that process.
Because the county is so spread out, many residents live a long drive from the nearest medical equipment or home-modification contractor. That matters for both the install day and later service visits.
It helps to have measurements, staircase photos and any funding paperwork ready before the visit. Grouping questions about indoor and outdoor stairs into one appointment also saves a second trip out to Calvert, Bremond or a farm road outside Franklin.
No single program here is confirmed to pay for a stair lift, so the practical path is to check several at once. Medicaid waivers, VA grants, USDA rural repair help and local nonprofits each cover different situations, and the details are listed in the programs section.
Texas also runs statewide programs, including the Amy Young Barrier Removal Program (AYBR) and the Community Living Assistance and Support Services (CLASS) Waiver. The Brazos Valley AAA at 3991 E. 29th St., Bryan, can be reached at (979) 595-2800 and is a good first call to sort out which ones apply to you.
A Texas Medicaid waiver for adults 21 and older who qualify for Medicaid and meet conditions such as needing nursing-facility level of care. The current source does not list stair lifts or home modifications, so ask your plan directly.
Plan-by-plan charts comparing covered long-term services for STAR+PLUS members, with the same eligibility as the waiver. The current source does not list stair lifts or home modifications.
A lifetime VA grant of up to $6,800 for service-connected disabilities or up to $2,000 for other eligible disabilities, for medically necessary home changes. It does not cover stair lifts; the VA lists stair glides and porch lifts as excluded.
A VA grant of up to $126,526 for FY2026 for veterans with severe service-connected disabilities who own or will own the home. The source names ramps and wider doorways and does not mention stair lifts.
A VA grant of up to $25,350 for FY2026 for veterans with certain service-connected disabilities, and it allows a family member to own the home. The source does not mention stair lifts.
A county office at 209 Cedar Street in Hearne that helps veterans and dependents with VA claims and benefits; it is not a direct funding source. Call (979) 701-6900, open Tuesday and Wednesday from 10:00am to 3:00pm.
Rural home-repair loans up to $40,000 and grants up to $10,000 for very-low-income homeowners, with grants limited to those 62 and older for removing health and safety hazards. Stair lifts are not named on the source.
An information, referral and care coordination agency for adults 60 and older in a seven-county region that includes Robertson County. It does not list a stair lift benefit; call (979) 595-2806.
A nonprofit center in Crockett that offers information, referral and independent living services to people with disabilities in Robertson County. No stair lift benefit is listed; call (936) 544-2811.
A nonprofit that builds free wheelchair ramps with volunteer labor for people with mobility impairments, and Robertson County is in its Bryan/College Station region. It builds ramps only and does not mention stair lifts; call (214) 558-0339.
Older adults
3991 E. 29th St., Bryan, 77802
Veterans
209 Cedar Street, Hearne, 77859
The HISA grant specifically excludes stair glides. The SAH and SHA grants do not mention stair lifts on their source page. Call the Robertson County Veterans Service Office at (979) 701-6900 to review your options.
The Brazos Valley AAA serves adults 60 and older, but STAR+PLUS covers Medicaid-eligible adults 21 and older who meet its conditions. CRCIL serves people with disabilities of any listed age in the county at (936) 544-2811.
The program funds repairs that remove health and safety hazards and does not name stair lifts. Grants are limited to homeowners 62 and older with very low income, and they must be repaid if the home is sold within 3 years.
An outdoor stair lift or a platform lift can handle entry steps. If a ramp fits better, The Texas Ramp Project builds free ramps in Robertson County at (214) 558-0339.
Usually not. Older rural homes here tend to have straight, single-run staircases, which take a straight stair lift. A curved rail is only needed if the stairs turn or have a landing.
The Brazos Valley AAA in Bryan at (979) 595-2800 can point you to programs for your situation. Veterans should also call the county Veterans Service Office at (979) 701-6900.
Tell us about the stairs in your home and we will explain which lift fits, what it costs and how installation works.
