If a disabled veteran wants to purchase a home with a VA loan, why should they be limited to searching for a property that already has access features installed? Fortunately the VA has several grants and programs to assist disabled vets in modifying a home to make it more accessible.

In our last blog post we discussed some of these VA benefits and grants for disabled veterans. On such grant is the Specially Adapted Housing Grant, also known as a VA 2101(a) grant.This VA benefit is meant  to offset the cost of specially adapted housing for qualified disabled veterans.

According to VA requirements, a qualified recipient is anyone entitled to or currently receiving VA compensation for what the Department of Veterans Affairs defines as “permanent and total” service-connected disability.

There are specific disabilities and type of injuries that may qualify for this VA grant money. Every veteran applying for this grant must have his or her case reviewed to be considered for the program, but the VA does publish a list that shows who is “basically eligible” for the 2101(a).

Even those who meet the conditions on the VA list are not automatically eligible–each medical condition must be recognized by the Department of Veterans Affairs. Anyone who wants to apply for the 2101(a) grant must have VA documentation of the conditions on the list, which include:

1. Loss, or loss of use of both lower extremities such as to preclude locomotion without the aid of braces, crutches, canes, or a wheelchair.

2. Blindness in both eyes having only light perception, plus loss or loss of use of one lower extremity.

3. The loss, or loss of use, of one lower extremity together with residuals of organic disease or injury, or the loss or loss of use of one upper extremity. These injuries must “preclude locomotion without the aid of braces, crutches, canes, or a wheelchair.”

4. The loss, or loss of use, of both upper extremities, so as to preclude use of the arms at or above the elbows.

5. Permanent, total disability due to a severe burn injury as determined by the VA.

While the VA official disability rating is used to determine eligibility for the 2101(a) grant, such ratings are subject to review and is not considered “permanent” once the determination is made. Any applicant turned down for the VA 2101(a) grant could have the option to appeal, but the VA may require a new review of the veteran’s case and medical claims.

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