Help for seniors in Hamilton: where to start, getting around, and trusted local businesses.

Where to start

• Help at home or long-term care: Ontario Health atHome, 1-833-515-1234, arranges publicly funded home care and every long-term care application. Read home care in Ontario.
• Community and social services: dial 2-1-1 to reach 211 Ontario, which helps you find community and social services near you.
• Government benefits: our free Benefits Finder shows which federal and Ontario programs are worth checking.

Getting around

On the HSR, riders 65 and over pay $2.35 a ride with a PRESTO card set to the senior fare type, against $2.85 for an adult; a senior monthly pass is $47.50 and an annual pass $475. Hamilton residents 80 and over ride free with a Golden Age PRESTO card, issued at the HSR Customer Service Centre with proof of age and Hamilton residency. Lower income residents can apply for Fare Assist, which halves the senior fare. Read the City’s page.

DARTS gives door-to-door rides to people with physical or functional limitations or health conditions who can’t use the regular bus. Accessible Transportation Services (ATS) decides eligibility case by case, and the application has a part for a health care professional. Call 905-529-1212 and press 1. Read the City’s page.

More: transportation for seniors, including the free accessible parking permit and renewing a licence at 80.

Programs and activities

The City of Hamilton runs seniors centres and clubs with drop-in and registered programs for older adults, among them the Ancaster Senior Achievement Centre and the Flamborough Seniors Centre in Waterdown. Call 905-546-3747. Read the City’s page.

Help with money

The City of Hamilton lets homeowners 65 and over (or who receive ODSP or a disability benefit) with a combined income of $44,568 or less defer the yearly increase in their property tax, interest free, until the home is sold, or defer the whole tax, with interest (4.45% for 2026) and a $200 fee plus HST. You must live in the home and have owned it for at least a year, and apply each year, by mail or in person, not by email. Call 905-546-2489. Read the City’s page.

Ontario’s Senior Homeowners’ Property Tax Grant helps homeowners 64 and over with low to moderate income, and is claimed on your tax return; our benefits checklist explains it.

For changes that help you stay at home, read grants and tax credits for home changes.

CASL partners who serve Hamilton

These businesses name Hamilton among the places they work, on their own CASL page. Each is a partner in our network with an offer or a standard of service for members; see the page for details. Many more partners serve the whole GTA: see every partner and offer. To see two that do the kind of help you need, use Find help.