Overview
The VA offers housing grants to veterans with certain service-connected disabilities to purchase, build, or modify a home to meet their accessibility needs. These are grants — not loans — meaning you don't pay them back. There are three main programs:
Specially Adapted Housing (SAH) Grant
The SAH Grant is the larger of the two main grant programs. The maximum grant amount for 2025 is approximately $109,986.
Eligibility
You qualify if you have a service-connected disability that includes:
- Loss or loss of use of both legs (or one leg and residuals of a qualifying organic disease/injury)
- Loss or loss of use of both arms at or above the elbow
- Blindness in both eyes (5/200 or less) plus loss or loss of use of one leg
- Loss or loss of use of one leg together with one arm
- Certain severe burn injuries
- ALS (Lou Gehrig's disease) rated service-connected
What the Grant Covers
- Building a specially adapted home on land you own
- Modifying an existing home (widening doorways, installing ramps, roll-in showers, adapted kitchens)
- Purchasing an already-adapted home
- You can use this grant up to 6 times (previously 3), as long as the total doesn't exceed the maximum
Special Housing Adaptation (SHA) Grant
The SHA Grant is for a different set of disabilities and has a lower maximum — approximately $44,299 for 2025.
Eligibility
You qualify if you have a service-connected disability that includes:
- Blindness in both eyes (with 20/200 or less visual acuity)
- Loss or loss of use of both hands
- Certain severe burn injuries (different criteria than SAH)
- Certain severe respiratory injuries (requiring the use of assisted breathing equipment)
What the Grant Covers
- Same types of modifications as SAH but at the lower grant amount
- Can be used to adapt a home owned by a family member where you live
Temporary Residence Adaptation (TRA)
If you're eligible for SAH or SHA but are living temporarily in a family member's home, you can use a TRA grant to adapt that home. The limits are lower:
- TRA based on SAH: up to ~$44,299
- TRA based on SHA: up to ~$7,717
How to Apply
- Complete VA Form 26-4555 (Application for Adapted Housing)
- The VA will verify your service-connected disability status
- A VA Specially Adapted Housing Agent will be assigned to help you through the process
- The grant can be used with or without a VA home loan
Tips
- These grants stack with VA home loans. You can use the SAH/SHA grant for modifications AND a VA loan for the purchase — no down payment and no modifications out of pocket
- You can use the grant multiple times — up to 6 uses, as long as total amounts don't exceed the cap
- Plan modifications before you buy. The VA SAH agent can help evaluate whether a home is suitable for adaptation before you close
- Renting? The grants generally require ownership. If you're renting, the TRA option for family-member homes may be an alternative
- Don't pay out of pocket first. Get the grant approved before starting modifications — the VA generally won't reimburse work already completed