HOUSINGVA program

Specially Adapted Housing (SAH) Grant

Grant of up to $126,526 (FY 2026) to build, buy, or modify a permanent home for veterans with certain severe service-connected disabilities, such as the loss or loss of use of more than one limb, blindness in both eyes, or certain severe burns. The grant can be used up to 6 times.

Available to veterans with certain severe service-connected disabilities, such as loss of use of limbs, blindness in both eyes, severe burns, or ALS

View on VA.gov

Example value

Up to $126,526FY 2026 maximum, usable up to 6 times

Step-by-step guide

What you get

A VA grant to build, buy, or change a home so it fits a severe service-connected disability. It can be used up to six times, up to a total maximum the law sets.

What VA looks for: a disability on the SAH list

A disability on the SAH listRated permanent and total: loss or loss of use of both legs, or of one leg together with an arm or with another disease or injury, so that you need braces, crutches, canes, or a wheelchair to get around; loss or loss of use of both arms, so that you cannot use them at or above the elbow; or full thickness or subdermal burns with scar tightening that limits motion of two or more limbs, or one limb and the trunk. Also on the list: permanent blindness in both eyes (20/200 or less in the better eye with glasses, or a field of vision no wider than 20 degrees) and service-connected ALS. Needing braces or a wheelchair means using them as your normal way of getting around, even if you sometimes move another way. A prosthesis counts like a brace.
Or one leg or foot lost after September 11, 2001Loss or loss of use of one leg or foot from a disability that began on or after September 11, 2001, so that you cannot walk or keep your balance without braces, crutches, canes, or a wheelchair. Here the disability has to be permanent, but it does not have to be total. Congress allows 120 of these grants each fiscal year; if the limit is reached, VA.gov says the grant may be possible in a later year.
Rated by VA as connected to serviceA veteran needs VA compensation for the disability, including a disability VA pays as if service connected under 38 U.S.C. 1151. A total rating for unemployability (TDIU) counts as total for this grant. A service member needs a disability that started or got worse in the line of duty.

Source: 38 CFR 3.809(b) (opens in new tab); 38 CFR 3.809(c) (opens in new tab); 38 CFR 3.809(d) (opens in new tab); M21-1 XIII.i.2.B (opens in new tab); VA.gov: disability housing grants (opens in new tab); 38 CFR 3.809(a) (opens in new tab)

Which part of the grant are you on?

The disability VA looks for
VA first decides whether your disability is one the law lists for this grant. A veteran needs VA compensation for the disability. A service member on active duty can apply too, when the disability started or got worse in the line of duty.
Source: 38 CFR 3.809(a) (opens in new tab); 38 CFR 3.809(b) (opens in new tab); M21-1 XIII.i.2.B (opens in new tab); VA.gov: disability housing grants (opens in new tab)
Ways to use the grant
The grant can help you build a home on land you buy or already own, change a home you own, or pay toward a home that is already adapted. For building, VA pays up to half of the land and building costs. For changing a home you own, VA pays the larger of two amounts: the cost of the changes, or half that cost plus the smaller of half the price of the home or what you still owe on it. For a home already adapted, VA pays the smaller of half its price or what you still owe on it. Every plan stops at the grant maximum.
1. A home you own or will ownYou own the home, or show VA you will own it. Besides a deed in your name, VA can accept a life estate, a trust or long-term lease that works like one, a share in a housing co-op, or a lease under a tribal agreement with VA. Owning the home with someone else does not shrink the grant, but your share has to secure your right to live there.
2. A permanent homeVA.gov describes the SAH grant as help with a permanent home, one you plan to live in for a long time. Changing a family member's home where you stay for a while is a separate grant, TRA.
Source: 38 CFR 36.4402(a) (opens in new tab); 38 CFR 36.4405(b) (opens in new tab); VA.gov: disability housing grants (opens in new tab); 38 CFR 36.4401 (opens in new tab); 38 CFR 36.4402(c) (opens in new tab)
Feasibility and property review
After the disability decision, VA's Regional Loan Center reviews the plan. Conditional approval looks at your disability, whether the plan is medically feasible and the home suitable, and how much of the grant you have left. Final approval looks at the home itself.
1. Medically feasible to live thereVA decides that you can live outside a hospital or nursing home, and in this home and this area. When you are in a hospital or long-term care, a VA physician makes this decision at the request of the loan office.
2. A suitable home at a cost that fits your incomeThe home has to suit your daily living needs, and its cost has to bear a proper relation to your income and expenses, now and later.
3. Plans and property that meet VA rulesThe plans for the changes meet the SAH minimum property and design requirements. A home in a federal flood hazard area needs flood insurance. The home is in the United States or its territories, or in a country where VA finds it practical to help. You also sign fair housing certifications, such as not refusing to sell or rent the home because of race, color, religion, sex, familial status, disability, or national origin.
Source: 38 CFR 36.4405(a) (opens in new tab); 38 CFR 36.4405(b) (opens in new tab); 38 CFR 36.4404(b) (opens in new tab); M21-1 XIII.i.2.B (opens in new tab)
Using the grant again
You can use the grant up to six times over your lifetime, and you do not have to use the full amount at once. All uses together stay within the grant maximum. VA.gov says you may receive up to the current maximum for the last year you use the grant.
1. Uses and money leftVA counts how many of the six uses you have made and how much you have received. Any SHA or TRA grant you got before VA found that the disability meets the SAH rules counts toward the six.
2. Costs from the right dateOn a later use, the grant repays only costs from on or after the date VA conditionally approves that use.
Source: 38 CFR 36.4403 (opens in new tab); VA.gov: disability housing grants (opens in new tab); 38 CFR 36.4402(d) (opens in new tab); 38 CFR 36.4405(a) (opens in new tab)

What to gather, and what it shows VA

Documents for this benefit: what each is, what it shows VA, and how VA gets it
Document	What it shows	How VA gets it	Have it?
Your VA rating decision The VA decision letter that lists your service-connected conditions and their ratings, including any decision on the housing grant.	A listed disability VA connects to service, and whether VA rated it permanent and total	VA already holds it in your file, and you can download decision letters on VA.gov. When a decision on another claim shows the disability meets the housing grant rules, VA can decide that question in the same rating.	Yes
Medical records of the disability VA or private medical records that show the loss or loss of use, the vision loss, the burns and how they limit motion, or ALS, and how you get around.	The disability, and whether you need braces, crutches, canes, or a wheelchair	VA will request your VA records for you. For private records, send copies to VA, or complete VA Form 21-4142 and VA Form 21-4142a so VA can request them.
Application for the grant (VA Form 26-4555) The VA form for the SAH or SHA grant. It asks for your Social Security number and VA file number, whether you applied before for specially adapted housing or for a home improvement and structural alteration grant, and whether you are in a nursing home or medical care facility.	Your request, your past grant use, and where you live now	Apply online on VA.gov, mail the form to the Claims Intake Center address VA.gov gives, or bring it to a VA regional office. One application covers both SAH and SHA.
Medical feasibility review A decision by a VA physician on whether you can live in the planned home, made when you are in a hospital, nursing home, or other care facility.	Whether living in the planned home is medically feasible	The VA loan office asks a VA physician for it. You do not request it yourself.
Deed, or proof you will own the home A deed, or papers showing you will own the home. A life estate, trust, long-term lease, or co-op share can also count.	That you own or will own the home you plan to live in	VA asks for it before final approval. It goes to VA, not to BeneVets.	Yes
Plans, specifications, and builder bid The building plans and specifications for the changes, and the bid from your builder.	That the changes meet the SAH design requirements, and what they cost	An architect or builder prepares them. After conditional approval, VA can approve in writing, before final approval, costs such as architect services, land surveys, and legal fees, which are then paid from the grant.
Flood insurance policy A flood insurance policy on the home, needed when the home is in a FEMA special flood hazard area.	Flood coverage at the level VA sets	It goes to VA before final approval. Coverage must be at least the full insurable value of the home or the most the National Flood Insurance Program offers, whichever is less.	Yes
Income and expense records Records of your income and regular expenses that the VA loan office asks for.	Whether the cost of the home fits your income and expenses	Send them to VA when the loan office asks. They do not go to BeneVets.	Yes
Invoices and receipts for costs Bills and receipts for approved costs, including costs you paid yourself.	What the work cost, and when you paid it	VA can ask for proof of costs at any time. VA usually pays the builder, an escrow agent, or your lender, and can repay you for approved costs you paid with your own money.	Yes

Records and forms go to VA. BeneVets does not ask for copies of them.

Steps, in order

Get the disability rated first
The grant starts from a disability VA connects to service. If you have not filed a disability compensation claim for it, file VA Form 21-526EZ first.
Source: VA Form 21-526EZ (opens in new tab); 38 CFR 3.809(a) (opens in new tab); M21-1 XIII.i.2.B (opens in new tab)
Get free help from a VSO
Free help: an accredited VSO can file this with you. Find one near you in the BeneVets VSO directory at Find an accredited VSO near you. VA also answers housing grant questions at 877-827-3702 (TTY: 711), Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. ET.
Source: VA.gov: accredited representatives (opens in new tab); VA.gov: how to apply for an adapted housing grant (opens in new tab)
Apply on VA Form 26-4555
Apply online on VA.gov, or mail VA Form 26-4555 to Department of Veterans Affairs, Claims Intake Center, PO Box 4444, Janesville, WI 53547-4444. You can also bring it to your nearest VA regional office. Have your Social Security number ready, and your VA file or claim number if you have one.
Source: VA Form 26-4555 (opens in new tab); VA.gov: how to apply for an adapted housing grant (opens in new tab)
Read the decision on the disability
VA rates whether your disability meets the SAH rules and sends you a letter. If VA says no to SAH, the same decision also looks at the smaller SHA grant.
Source: M21-1 XIII.i.2.B (opens in new tab); VA.gov: how to apply for an adapted housing grant (opens in new tab)
If VA says no, ask for a review
If you disagree with the decision on the disability, you can ask for a decision review. A new application after a denial needs a valid decision review request with it.
Source: M21-1 XIII.i.2.B (opens in new tab); VA.gov: decision reviews and appeals (opens in new tab)
Work toward conditional approval
VA's Regional Loan Center checks whether the plan is medically feasible, whether the home suits your needs and your budget, and how much of the grant you have left. It can then send you written conditional approval.
Source: 38 CFR 36.4405(a) (opens in new tab); 38 CFR 36.4404(b) (opens in new tab); M21-1 XIII.i.2.B (opens in new tab)
Get approval before you spend on plans
After conditional approval, VA can approve in writing costs like architect plans, land surveys, and legal fees before final approval. These stay within 20 percent of your grant total unless VA approves more in writing. If the grant stops before final approval, VA still repays those approved costs. The payment comes out of your grant total and counts as one of your six uses.
Source: 38 CFR 36.4406 (opens in new tab)
Get plans and a builder bid
Have the changes drawn up so they meet the SAH minimum property and design requirements. The bid from your builder helps set how much of the grant you use this time.
Source: 38 CFR 36.4405(b) (opens in new tab); VA.gov: disability housing grants (opens in new tab)
If you also use a VA home loan
When a VA-backed home loan helps pay for the home, the whole deal also follows the VA home loan rules. The lender needs your COE.
Source: 38 CFR 36.4407(a) (opens in new tab); VA.gov: how to request a VA home loan COE (opens in new tab)
Meet the final approval rules
For final approval, VA looks at the plans, proof that you own or will own the home, flood insurance if the home is in a flood hazard area, and the home's location. You also sign the fair housing certifications.
Source: 38 CFR 36.4405(b) (opens in new tab)
Keep records as VA pays
VA usually pays the builder, an escrow agent, or your lender. It can repay you for approved costs you paid yourself. Keep invoices and receipts, since VA can ask for proof of costs at any time.
Source: 38 CFR 36.4406 (opens in new tab); 38 CFR 36.4408 (opens in new tab)
Plan any later use
If you have uses and money left, apply again for a later project. A later use repays only costs from on or after its conditional approval, so get that approval before work starts.
Source: 38 CFR 36.4403 (opens in new tab); VA.gov: disability housing grants (opens in new tab)
If the veteran dies before the grant is paid
If the veteran dies before VA pays the full grant, the estate sends VA every request for repayment within one year of the date the VA loan office learns of the death.
Source: 38 CFR 36.4406 (opens in new tab)

Good to know

How much the grant pays

The law sets a total maximum for the grant, and VA can raise it each October 1 in step with a building cost index. VA.gov lists the maximum by fiscal year. What VA pays on each plan also depends on your costs.

Source: VA.gov: disability housing grants (opens in new tab); 38 CFR 36.4411(a) (opens in new tab); 38 CFR 36.4402(a) (opens in new tab)

Up to six uses

You can use the grant up to six times over your lifetime and take as much or as little as a project needs. VA.gov says you may receive up to the current maximum for the last year you use the grant.

Source: VA.gov: disability housing grants (opens in new tab); 38 CFR 36.4403 (opens in new tab)

Two VA offices act on it

VA claims staff decide whether the disability meets the SAH rules. VA's Regional Loan Center then decides the grant itself: feasibility, the home, the plans, and payment.

Source: M21-1 XIII.i.2.B (opens in new tab)

From SHA to SAH, not the other way

Once VA finds the disability meets the SAH rules, the smaller SHA grant is off the table. If you start with SHA and VA later finds the disability meets the SAH rules, you can move to SAH, and your earlier SHA and TRA grants count toward the six uses.

Source: 38 CFR 36.4402(d) (opens in new tab); 38 CFR 3.809a(a) (opens in new tab); M21-1 XIII.i.2.B (opens in new tab)

Other VA help with home changes

A home improvement and structural alteration grant under 38 U.S.C. 1717 can be used alongside this grant, as long as VA does not pay twice for the same change. The application asks whether you applied for one.

Source: 38 CFR 36.4402(d) (opens in new tab); VA Form 26-4555 (opens in new tab)

BeneVets is informational and is not an accredited representative. Free help: an accredited VSO can work through VA benefits with you at no cost. Find an accredited VSO near you