This is what you hopefully hired an architect for. This should have been planned from the beginning.I think maybe a pneumatic elevator could work but a chair lift can be installed on almost any staircase.A staircase in the center of a house can be a beautiful sculptural element

pic’s?

Floor plan?

You don't just plunk a stairway down in the middle of a floor plan. It has to be a comprehensive design.

What Joseph said.

And with a stair lift, will there come a time when the lift is too difficult for you to use? And there is nothing visually attractive about having a lift on a staircase. You'd be better off with the elevator.

What does your floor plan look like?

How are you getting to the 2nd floor now? I'm going to make an assumption that the bedrooms are on the 2nd floor, correct? If that's the case, is there room to convert a section of the 1st floor to a master bedroom/bath that will be more accessible to you? I think that would be a better solution vs. what you're currently suggesting. But yes, this is a job for an architect, if stairs are critical.

We haven’t started construction. The master suite is half of the second floor. I am having to use part of the first floor to put in a therapy pool for my legs; that is limiting using the downstairs space for a bedroom. Unfortunatel, the lot is very narrow and our HOA is very strict on how close you can build to your lot line. We are near Lake Erie and while not on the water; just a couple of lots away. I would rather have built a ranch style, but in this area that was not possible and have even a small indoor spa that I need for therapy. I am trying to figure out as much as I can before the architect takes over. It is a plan I have wanted , but trying to rework because of my injurie. It may end up not being possible.

Yeah, this really is a job for an architect. Better to spend some $ upfront to get it right and to perhaps get some better ideas for how to make this work. Good luck.

Because of your specialized needs, I agree you'll have a much better result working with a good architect.

Don't give an architect an internet plan factory and tie his/her hands. Instead create a budget, a list of wants and needs and let a licensed architect (not a designer or draftsman) do their job.

You might be surprised with how an architect can configure a house for you.

Have you worked with any of the handicap advocacy groups? There are people and agencies that work specifically with ensuring accessibility and there are architects who specialize in aging in place design and accessibility needs. There are grants and loans that are geared specifically toward accessibility for handicapped people. If you don't know the local advocacy groups call 211 and ask. Reach out to your local HUD office. They can also help with access issues. This is not the time to go it alone.

Thank you so much for the informatio. I was not aware that they would help anyone that isn’t a veteran. I will definitely check into that. It would be very helpfu. We were cutting back on some areas so that I could get what I need to have full access to the home and a place for my therapy.

Do you need a wheelchair lift or just can't do the stairs?

I need a wheelchair lift. I am not confined to the wheelchair all of the time; but if I have to stand or walk for any length of time I have to be in the wheelchair. I cannot climb steps at all. I have been told that at some point, I will be back to using the wheelchair all the time. I am just thankful I have had a few years of walking some. At the time I was injured I was told I would not walk again; each day I do is a gift.

My brother's house has a lift for a smaller wheelchair that is installed against a wall. But once you get downstairs you can send it back upstairs, so that it is gone and the bottom of the lift looks like the ceiling. You can't tell its even there most of the time. I think it works with air.

I would really explore selling and looking for a one story home that meets your needs. At least evaluate that once you have costs from the architect. You will likely end up spending a lot of money that you will not recoup by putting in very owner specific items, and may find that selling as is and buying something more suitable and wheelchair ready is more cost effective.

An elevator can be had for $20,000 and the advantage is you won't have to get in and out of your chair to get on the stair lift.

Stair lifts aren't great - you pretty much need a straight run of (wide) stairs, and, if your mobility declines, you need a wheelchair on both levels. They're also pretty ugly. To be honest, I think you should be looking for a one story house rather than trying to build an access-friendly two story on a lot with restrictions.

She doesn't want a stair lift. She wants a wheelchair lift. It doesn't go up the stairs.

This is like the one my bother has.

Ah, got you. But stairs and a lift like that are going to take up a fair bit of space. The OP is really going to need an architect, preferably one with some qualifications in accessibility design, to figure out how this all works.

suzyq that's a great solution once a house has been built, but if it's just in the planning stage, I believe an elevator is a better choice. I say that because it can be planned in advance, can be unobtrusive and not in your face and looks to be larger than the lift so that if the OP ever needs help from a second person both can go in the elevator.

But she wants open concept with the stair case and lift in the middle of a great room. The air lift can only do a small wheelchair, not a big electric one. My SIL can stand enought to do a walker into the lift. She now has a small wheel chair upstairs and a larger electric one downstairs. But at some point, the lift can accommodate a small chair down to the ground floor where she would be able to get into the big one. I agree that its more of a retrofit and ideally someone who is wheelchair bound should live in a single story ADA compliant house and not be building a two-story.

The biggest problem for me is the property around here is not easy to come by. The lots are all very small because of Lake Erie. You either have to build a two story home to have space or a very small one story. The other alternative is putting a manufactured home on the lot; which is what is on the lot now. We want to donate it to a veterans group and have it moved off of the property in order to build a house. The mobile home sits so high, we are going to put a small lift in so I can get up to the porch easier until we get everything ready to begin building. The population up here triples in the summers. Many million dollar homes sit empty all winter. We are up here all year and we are on a much tighter budget, so we have to make due with the small lot. Fortunately, we don’t care about boating because we are too busy working making canvas enclosures for other people’s boats. I have only been up here 3 years. I grew up in central Ohio, but lived the last 40 years in Little Rock, Arkansas, so all of this is new for me. I appreciate all of your Suggestions and they have helped Me know where I nred to get more information before going to an architect. I don’t want to end up with something I won’t be happy with.

Maybe you could look a bit out of the center of town to get a larger lot. Or do you need to be in the center of that particular city for some reason? Do you run a business out of your home that needs to be close to the water?

If you need a spa for your legs then it seems that could be best incorporated in a master bath on the main floor, and a single story home would make more sense. You may be interested in The Not So Big House by Susan Susanka. Lots of food for thought for the pre-building stage, and ideas about how to focus on the functions that you need your spaces to perform. Great to read before you talk to an architect, or to assess how a plan can work.

. http://www.notsobighouse.com/

I have no problem with the idea of building up. It's what I did because my lot is only 9100 square feet and we could only build on 35% of the lot. An elevator is your best bet for now and for long term. But you need a person of design talent to put it all together for you.