VA Housing Grants Explained: SAH, SHA, TRA, and HISA

The Department of Veterans Affairs runs four VA housing grants for veterans and service members with disabilities: 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. Three of the four require a service-connected disability; HISA is the exception. The dollar amounts range from $2,000 at the low end of HISA to $126,526 for SAH in fiscal year 2026.¹ Which grant fits you depends on your disability, whether you own the home, and whether the living arrangement is permanent or temporary.

Specially Adapted Housing (SAH) Grant

SAH is the largest of the four programs and is aimed at veterans with the most severe permanent and total service-connected disabilities. The fiscal year 2026 lifetime maximum is $126,526.¹ You can use it to build an adapted home on land you plan to buy, retrofit a home you already own, or pay down the remaining mortgage on a home you previously adapted with your own money.²

You must be receiving VA disability compensation for a permanent and total service-connected condition in one of these categories:

Loss or loss of use of both lower extremities, severe enough that you cannot move without braces, crutches, canes, or a wheelchair.
Blindness in both eyes, meaning central visual acuity of 20/200 or less in the better eye with corrective lenses, or a visual field no wider than 20 degrees.
Loss or loss of use of one lower extremity together with residuals of organic disease or injury, or with the loss or loss of use of one upper extremity, where these conditions together prevent movement without assistive devices.
A permanent and total disability resulting from a severe burn injury, as determined by the VA.

These criteria come from 38 U.S.C. § 2101(a) and its regulations.² Veterans and service members who served on or after September 11, 2001, may also qualify with certain additional permanent disabilities.³

You can draw on SAH up to six times over your lifetime, which matters if you move. Every use pulls from the same lifetime cap, so spending $80,000 to adapt your first home leaves $46,526 for future homes.¹ The VA adjusts the maximum annually based on construction costs.

Special Home Adaptation (SHA) Grant

SHA covers a narrower set of disabilities and offers up to $25,350 in fiscal year 2026.¹ You do not need to own the home outright. You can use SHA funds to modify a residence owned by a family member as long as you live there and intend to keep living there.⁴

Under 38 U.S.C. § 2101(b), eligibility is currently limited to veterans with a permanent and total service-connected disability involving either the anatomical loss or loss of use of both hands, or a severe burn injury as determined by the VA.⁵ Blindness once qualified under SHA but was moved to SAH in 2020, so older guidance may be out of date.

Typical SHA-funded work includes widening doorways, adding handrails, adjusting countertop heights, and installing specialized lighting or fixtures. Like SAH, you can use SHA up to six times across different residences, all drawing from the same lifetime cap.¹

Temporary Residence Adaptation (TRA) Grant

Many veterans recovering from serious injuries live with family before setting up a permanent home. TRA, authorized by 38 U.S.C. § 2102A, funds adaptations to a family member’s residence you’re living in temporarily.⁶ You don’t need to own the home or plan to stay.

You must already qualify for either SAH or SHA. The amount depends on which:

SAH-eligible veterans: up to $50,961 in FY 2026
SHA-eligible veterans: up to $9,100 in FY 2026

These amounts come out of your lifetime SAH or SHA benefit.¹ Spending $30,000 on a TRA modification to your parent’s home leaves $30,000 less for your eventual permanent adapted home. That tradeoff is usually worth it, but keep the math in view when planning.

Home Improvements and Structural Alterations (HISA) Grant

HISA works differently from the other three. It’s administered through the VA healthcare system rather than the loan guaranty side, the dollar limits are smaller, and it’s available to veterans with non-service-connected disabilities too.⁷

Lifetime limits:

Service-connected disability: up to $6,800
Non-service-connected disability: up to $2,000

These figures are set by regulation and have not changed in recent years.⁸ The amounts are modest but can cover an entrance ramp, a widened bathroom doorway, or plumbing updates for medical equipment.

HISA requires a written prescription from a VA physician explaining why the modification is medically necessary, either to continue home health treatment or to provide basic access to the home and essential bathroom facilities.⁹ Without that prescription the application won’t move forward, and a vague note saying “patient needs bathroom modifications” will not be enough. The prescription needs to tie the specific improvement to your diagnosed condition and to ongoing treatment or access needs.

What HISA Does Not Cover

The VA excludes several categories from HISA funding:

New home construction
Walk-in tubs, jetted tubs, spa tubs, and hydrotherapy tubs
Elevators and exterior decking
Home security systems
Routine maintenance such as replacing roofs, furnaces, or air conditioners
Modifications a property owner is already required to provide under the Americans with Disabilities Act
Medical equipment such as hospital beds, portable ramps, stair glides, and ceiling lifts, which the VA Prosthetic Service funds separately

HISA and SAH cannot fund the same project, though you can receive both over time for different work.¹⁰

How to Apply

For SAH, SHA, and TRA, the core application is VA Form 26-4555, “Application in Acquiring Specially Adapted Housing or Special Home Adaptation Grant.”¹¹ Include your VA rating decision letter confirming the service-connected disability and its specific nature. You can apply online through VA.gov, in person at a VA regional office, or by mail to the Department of Veterans Affairs Claims Intake Center, PO Box 4444, Janesville, WI 53547-4444.¹²

HISA uses a different form, VA Form 10-0103, “Veterans Application for Assistance in Acquiring Home Improvements and Structural Alterations.”⁹ The HISA package must include:

A VA physician’s prescription describing the project, the diagnosis, and the medical justification
The completed VA Form 10-0103
An itemized cost estimate for labor and materials
Proof of homeownership, or written permission from the property owner

After the VA confirms eligibility for an SAH, SHA, or TRA application, it assigns a Specially Adapted Housing Agent to your case.¹³ The agent visits the property, evaluates the proposed modifications for feasibility and safety, and reviews construction plans and cost estimates against local market rates before recommending approval to the regional authority. Once approved, funds are usually paid directly to contractors or reimbursed after a final inspection. Straightforward retrofits can wrap in a few weeks; building a new adapted home takes considerably longer.

Taxes and Mortgage Life Insurance

Money received from these grants is not taxable. The IRS excludes VA disability benefits, including grants for wheelchair-accessible housing, from gross income, so SAH, SHA, TRA, and HISA payments do not go on your federal return.¹⁴

If you receive an SAH grant to buy or build a home, you also become eligible for Veterans’ Mortgage Life Insurance (VMLI), which covers up to $200,000 of your remaining mortgage balance. VMLI is decreasing-term coverage: as the mortgage shrinks, so does the benefit, and if you die the payment goes directly to the lender rather than to a personal beneficiary. You must hold title, carry a mortgage on the home, and apply before age 70.¹⁵ Ask your SAH agent about it during the grant process.

If Your Grant Is Denied

You have one year from the date on the decision letter to request a Board Appeal, filed on VA Form 10182 (Decision Review Request: Board Appeal). You choose one of three review tracks:¹⁶

Direct review: a Veterans Law Judge reviews the existing evidence with no hearing and no new evidence. Target decision time is about a year.
Evidence submission: you submit new evidence within 90 days of filing, with no hearing. Target is about 18 months.
Hearing: you appear before a Veterans Law Judge and may present new evidence at the hearing or within 90 days after. Target is about two years.

File online, by mail to the Board of Veterans’ Appeals at P.O. Box 27063, Washington, DC 20038, by fax to 844-678-8979, or in person at a regional office. An accredited attorney, claims agent, or Veterans Service Organization representative can help. If you disagree with the Board’s decision, you can either file a Supplemental Claim with new evidence or appeal to the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims within 120 days.¹⁶

1
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. Disability Housing Grants for Veterans
2
eCFR. 38 CFR Part 36 Subpart C – Assistance to Eligible Individuals in Acquiring Specially Adapted Housing
3
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 38 USC 2101 – Acquisition and Adaptation of Housing: Eligible Veterans
4
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 38 USC 2101 – Acquisition and Adaptation of Housing: Eligible Veterans
5
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 38 USC 2101 – Acquisition and Adaptation of Housing: Eligible Veterans
6
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 38 USC 2102A – Assistance for Individuals Residing Temporarily in Housing Owned by a Family Member
7
eCFR. 38 CFR 17.3100 – Purpose and Scope
8
eCFR. 38 CFR Part 17 – Home Improvements and Structural Alterations (HISA) Program
9
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. Home Improvements and Structural Alterations (HISA)
10
Department of Veterans Affairs. VHA Directive 1173.14(2) Home Improvements and Structural Alterations (HISA) Program
11
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. Apply for an Adapted Housing Grant
12
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. How to Apply for an Adapted Housing Grant
13
Department of Veterans Affairs. VA Pamphlet 26-69-1 – Questions on Specially Adapted Housing and Special Housing Adaptations
14
Internal Revenue Service. Veterans Tax Information and Services
15
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. Veterans’ Mortgage Life Insurance (VMLI)
16
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. Board Appeals