Home Improvement for Veterans: Grants, Loans, and Nonprofits

Veterans have several ways to pay for home repairs and accessibility modifications, and the main home improvement grants for veterans come from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs: the Specially Adapted Housing (SAH) grant, the Special Home Adaptation (SHA) grant, the Temporary Residence Adaptation (TRA) grant, and the Home Improvements and Structural Alterations (HISA) grant. When grants fall short, veterans can layer on VA-backed loans, USDA or FHA programs, or work with nonprofits that build or modify homes at no cost. What follows walks through each option, who qualifies, and how to apply.

VA Specially Adapted Housing Grants (SAH, SHA, TRA)

These are the VA’s primary grants for adapting a home to a service-connected disability. They do not have to be repaid. For fiscal year 2026, the maximum amounts are:

SAH: up to $126,526. Qualifying conditions include the loss or loss of use of more than one limb, blindness in both eyes, certain severe burns, or the loss of a lower extremity that requires assistive devices for mobility. It can be used to build, buy, or modify a permanent home the veteran owns or will own, up to six times over a lifetime, with unused funds carrying forward.
SHA: up to $25,350. Qualifying conditions include the loss or loss of use of both hands, certain severe burns, and respiratory or breathing injuries.
TRA: up to $50,961 for SAH-eligible veterans, or up to $9,100 for SHA-eligible veterans, when the veteran is living temporarily in a family member’s home that needs modifications. The veteran does not need to own the home.

The grant caps are adjusted each year based on construction costs. To apply, submit VA Form 26-4555 online at VA.gov, by mail to the VA Claims Intake Center in Janesville, Wisconsin, or in person at a VA regional office. You’ll need a Social Security number and, if applicable, a VA file or claim number. Once a VA Rating Decision confirms SAH eligibility, a VA Specially Adapted Housing Agent visits the veteran to walk through the grant process. Applicants can track claim status online after filing.¹²

One related program, the SAH Assistive Technology (SAHAT) grant, is often mistaken for an individual benefit. It isn’t. SAHAT awards go to researchers and organizations developing new assistive technologies, not to individual veterans, and no funding was allocated for fiscal years 2025 or 2026.³

Home Improvements and Structural Alterations (HISA) Grant

HISA is a smaller VA grant that covers medically necessary modifications to a veteran’s primary residence, and its eligibility reaches further than SAH or SHA because it also covers non-service-connected disabilities. The lifetime caps are:

$6,800 for a service-connected disability, a condition treated as if service-connected, or a non-service-connected disability if the veteran has a service-connected rating of at least 50 percent.
$2,000 for any other qualifying disability.

Covered work includes entrance and exit modifications, accessible bathrooms with features like roll-in showers, lowered kitchen or bathroom counters, permanent wheelchair ramps, and plumbing or electrical upgrades required for home medical equipment. HISA does not pay for walkways to exterior buildings, hot tubs, exterior decking, new construction, security systems, or routine upkeep like roof or furnace replacement.⁴

Apply through your local VA Prosthetic and Sensory Aids Service. The package must include VA Form 10-0103, a prescription from a VA physician describing the project and its medical justification, an itemized estimate covering labor, materials, permits, and inspections, and a color photograph of the area to be modified. Renters need a signed, notarized statement from the property owner authorizing the work. Once approved, the VA can release a 50 percent advance payment, with the balance paid after the veteran submits documentation that the project is complete.⁴⁵

Loan Options When Grants Don’t Cover the Cost

Grant caps often fall short of what a full remodel or accessibility retrofit actually costs. Several loan programs can fill the gap, sometimes stacked with a VA grant.

VA Cash-Out Refinance

Veterans with equity can replace their existing mortgage with a larger VA-backed loan and take the difference in cash at closing. That money can go toward renovations or any other purpose. The VA does not lend directly; borrowers work with private banks, mortgage companies, or credit unions. The VA allows borrowing up to 100 percent of the home’s appraised value, though many lenders cap it at 90 percent. There is no VA-imposed minimum credit score, but most lenders require at least 620. Borrowers pay a one-time funding fee of 2.15 percent of the loan amount for first-time users or 3.3 percent for repeat users; veterans receiving VA disability compensation are generally exempt. Closing costs typically run 3 to 5 percent. The home must be your primary residence, and the existing mortgage does not need to be a VA loan.⁶

Native American Direct Loan (NADL)

The NADL program, established in 1992, provides direct 30-year fixed-rate loans from the VA to eligible Native American veterans to purchase, construct, or improve homes on Federal Trust land. It requires no down payment, no private mortgage insurance, has low closing costs, and no loan limit. Because trust land generally cannot serve as collateral for conventional mortgages, this program fills a gap private lenders cannot. To use it, the veteran’s tribal government must have a signed Memorandum of Understanding with the VA. To check whether your tribe has an MOU, contact your VA regional benefit office or call 877-827-3702. The Senator Elizabeth Dole 21st Century Veterans Healthcare and Benefits Improvement Act recently broadened the program’s eligible land definition and adjusted MOU requirements.⁷⁸

FHA Title I Property Improvement Loans

Title I insures loans made by private lenders for property improvements. The maximum for a single-family home is $25,000 at a fixed rate with terms up to 20 years. Loans over $7,500 must be secured by a recorded lien; smaller loans can be unsecured. There are no income limits, and eligible work includes accessibility modifications like ramps and wider doorways. Luxury items such as swimming pools are excluded. Only HUD-approved lenders can originate these loans.⁹

USDA Section 504 Home Repair Program

Section 504 is not veteran-specific, but veterans in rural areas can use it. It offers loans of up to $40,000 at a 1 percent fixed rate over 20 years for repairs and modernization, and grants of up to $10,000 (lifetime cap) for homeowners aged 62 or older to remove health and safety hazards. Loans and grants can be combined for up to $50,000, or $55,000 in presidentially declared disaster areas. Eligibility requires homeownership and occupancy, a rural location, very-low income by county standards, and inability to obtain affordable credit elsewhere. Applications are accepted year-round through local USDA Rural Development offices.¹⁰

HUD’s Veterans Housing Rehabilitation and Modification Pilot

The Veterans Housing Rehabilitation and Modification Pilot Program (VHRMP), created under the FY 2015 National Defense Authorization Act, funds nonprofits to modify or rehabilitate the primary residences of low-income and disabled veterans. HUD awards competitive grants of $700,000 to $1 million to eligible 501(c)(3) or 501(c)(19) organizations, which must match 50 percent in funds or in-kind contributions. Covered work includes wheelchair ramps, bathroom fixtures, doorway widening, energy efficiency upgrades, and general rehabilitation for veterans with functional limitations.¹¹

Individual veterans do not apply to HUD. Instead, services flow through the nonprofits that win these grants. In FY 2022, HUD awarded $1 million each to five nonprofits including Habitat for Humanity International and Rebuilding Together. Roughly $6.4 million was available in FY 2023, with a performance period running through early 2027. No funding rounds for FY 2024 through 2026 have been publicly announced.¹²

Nonprofit Home Builds and Modifications

Several national nonprofits provide free modifications or build entire adapted homes. These are worth considering when grant caps won’t cover the work or when wait times matter.

Homes for Our Troops

Homes for Our Troops (HFOT) builds mortgage-free, custom-adapted homes for post-9/11 veterans injured in the Iraq or Afghanistan theaters. Since 2004, the organization has built homes for more than 360 veterans. Each home runs approximately 2,800 square feet, is built to Energy Star standards, and includes over 40 major adaptations beyond ADA requirements, including widened doorways and hallways, automatic door openers, roll-under sinks and cooktops, roll-in showers with digital temperature control, pull-down shelving, a backup generator, and a steel-reinforced safe room in the master bedroom closet. To qualify, a veteran must have been injured post-9/11, be retired or retiring from the military, hold a VA letter of eligibility for the SAH or SHA grant, and pass criminal and credit background checks. The HFOT home must be the veteran’s primary residence. A 10-year lien is placed on the home; starting in year six, the veteran accrues 20 percent equity annually and owns the home outright after ten years. Because HFOT is a 501(c)(3), recipients do not owe gift tax on the home. Inquiries can be submitted at hfotusa.org.¹³¹⁴

Gary Sinise Foundation R.I.S.E. Program

The R.I.S.E. (Restoring Independence, Supporting Empowerment) program provides mortgage-free custom-built smart homes for severely wounded veterans and first responders, primarily those with amputations, paralysis, or traumatic brain injuries. Homes feature smart automation, voice-activated climate and lighting controls, app-based locks, automated shades, and layouts tailored to specific injuries. As of late 2025, the foundation had completed 104 homes. Selection includes a background check, a daylong interview, and an in-home visit. From application to delivery, the process typically takes one and a half to two years.¹⁵¹⁶

Purple Heart Homes

Based in Statesville, North Carolina, Purple Heart Homes provides free housing modifications to honorably discharged veterans with service-connected disabilities. The organization has completed over 1,700 projects serving more than 4,000 veterans across service eras. It runs three programs: Veterans Aging in Place (bathroom renovations, ramps, doorway widening, grab bars); Veteran Modular Home Solutions (purpose-built, fully accessible modular homes); and the Veteran Home Opportunity Program (renovated or modified rental homes for disabled veterans who do not own). Apply at purplehearthomesusa.org.¹⁷

Habitat for Humanity and Rebuilding Together

Habitat for Humanity’s Repair Corps, supported by The Home Depot Foundation, delivers critical home repairs to veterans through local affiliates. Past work has included furnace installation, exterior ramps, window replacement, insulation, and plumbing and electrical upgrades. Availability varies by location.¹⁸ Rebuilding Together’s Veterans at Home program provides no-cost preventive modifications and repairs focused on safety, accessibility, and aging in place, and has completed over 13,000 veteran-focused projects since 2010. Both organizations operate through local affiliates, so contact your nearest chapter to start.¹⁹

State and Local Help, Including Property Tax Relief

Many states, counties, and cities run veteran home repair programs of their own. Scope and funding vary. Cook County, Illinois, for example, allocated $1.25 million in American Rescue Plan Act funds to complete repairs for 30 veteran-owned homes, with per-home costs of $15,000 to $45,000 covering roofing, windows, doors, ramps, accessible kitchens and bathrooms, electrical and plumbing work, and safety equipment. That program, run with Rebuilding Together Metro Chicago, completed its final repairs in May 2026.²⁰

Nearly all U.S. states and territories also offer property tax exemptions for veterans, often tied to disability rating. Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Mississippi, Oklahoma, and South Carolina offer full property tax exemptions for veterans with a 100 percent disability rating. Several states provide additional tax relief specifically for veterans who received a VA Specially Adapted Housing grant. These exemptions don’t fund improvements directly, but they free up cash you can put toward maintenance and modifications. Check with your state’s Department of Veterans Affairs, since rules change frequently.²¹

Avoiding Home Improvement Scams

Veterans seeking home repair help are frequent targets. VSAFE, the VA’s fraud prevention resource, flags contractors who demand full upfront payment and then fail to complete the work, scammers who impersonate accredited VA home loan servicers, and unsolicited callers pushing loans with hidden fees. The Disabled American Veterans warns that “pension poaching” schemes use home improvement offers as bait to extract personal and financial information from older veterans.²²²³

Never pay full project costs upfront. Check with state or local consumer agencies about legal limits on contractor down payments. Verify the accreditation of any attorney, agent, or veterans service organization through the VA Office of General Counsel’s accreditation tool. Never share bank account or VA login credentials. Requests for payment via wire transfer, prepaid debit card, cryptocurrency, or gift card are near-certain fraud. Report suspected scams to the VA benefits hotline at 1-800-827-1000, the Federal Trade Commission at reportfraud.ftc.gov, or the Better Business Bureau’s Scam Tracker.²²

1
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. Disability Housing Grants for Veterans
2
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. How to Apply for Disability Housing Grants
3
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. SAHAT Grant Program Awards
4
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Prosthetic and Sensory Aids Service. Home Improvements and Structural Alterations
5
eCFR. 38 CFR Part 17 – Home Improvements and Structural Alterations
6
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. VA Cash-Out Refinance Loan
7
MyMoney.gov. Native American Veteran Direct Loan Fact Sheet
8
U.S. Government Accountability Office. Native American Veterans Direct Loan Program
9
FDIC. FHA Title I Property Improvement Loan Insurance
10
USDA Rural Development. Single Family Housing Repair Loans and Grants
11
HUD Exchange. Veterans Housing Rehabilitation and Modification Pilot Program
12
Grants.gov. VHRMP FY 2023 Funding Opportunity
13
Homes for Our Troops. Building Homes
14
Homes for Our Troops. Get Help
15
Gary Sinise Foundation. Custom Homebuilding Program
16
Gary Sinise Foundation. Specially Adapted Smart Home Provides Newfound Independence for Army Veteran
17
Purple Heart Homes. Housing Assistance
18
Habitat for Humanity. Helping U.S. Veterans With Critical Home Repairs
19
Rebuilding Together. Veterans at Home
20
Cook County, Illinois. Veteran Home Repair Program
21
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. Unlocking Veteran Tax Exemptions Across States and U.S. Territories
22
VSAFE.gov. Home Loans and Housing Fraud Prevention
23
Disabled American Veterans. Identifying Scams