I just stumbled upon this discussion and felt compelled to make my contribution. I know brick because I work for a brick manufacturer. However, I will try to keep my personal bias at bay. The first issue to address is durability. When installed properly, either option will provide many decades of service. Both materials have the compressive strength and moisture absorption ratings to withstand the harshest climates nature can throw at them. There is actually another factor affecting cement pavers, but since it doesnt actually cause failure of the unit, I will address it in the appearance section. Either way, make sure your bricks/pavers are designed to go in the ground. Not all cement materials, nor are all bricks designed to do this. It was mentioned that the deterioration of house bricks in a patio was unheard of and that it would actually be an advantage to find reclaimed bricks from a demolition project. DO NOT DO THIS! For a segmental paving material to withstand Mother Nature, it must have a minimum compressive strength of 8,000 psi and a maximum absorption rate of 7% after a 24 hour soak in cold water. I have seen historical test data from the mid 1900Âs that showed that many solid house bricks (which were often used mistakenly as pavers) had compressive strengths around 5,000 psi and absorption rates in the double digits! Needless to say, those ill-fated patios are either long gone or a horrible eyesore now. Now that you can be comfortable in choosing a durable product, the second issue to address is appearance. Additional factors besides just the look of the brick/paver should be considered. For instance, do you want your pavement to match the colors of the bricks on your house? Will you be incorporating any retaining walls in your project? No matter how hard you try, you simply cannot match a clay color in a cement product and vice versa. Brick makers do not currently make a dry-stack retaining wall system; therefore a brick retaining wall will require more work. However, if you are trying to create a stately atmosphere it may be worth the additional work (or hiring of a mason contractor) to build your retaining wall. The first factor of appearance, the look of the actual brick/paver does speak pretty much for itself. However, I do want to address some comments from the thread. To my knowledge (I have not researched this) cement pavers have always had their colors mixed throughout the paver. (End lack of research warning.) What is actually happening is fading due to ultraviolet radiation. This can be mistaken for the coloring only being on the surface because with time cement pavers will actually wear down. This is evident in a cement paver project once it has been installed for about 10 years. Because the erosion is visible (you can actually see the aggregate) it is commonly believed that coloring is superficial as well. I do not see the issue of erosion as a durability factor since the units will still be in one piece and the pavement system as a whole will not fail. (Personal bias warning in effect)However, after all your hard work and money put into your project, wouldnÂt you want it to look the same as it does now in ten years? (End bias warning.) To be fair, cement pavers can be sealed on an annual basis to ensure their color retention. However, when you add up the cost of initial construction and yearly maintenance over ten years, you could probably install solid granite for about the same cost. (I havenÂt done the math and may have exaggerated, so research it for yourself and see.) There are advantages for both products (Although one list may be longer than the other!) and your unique concerns and application should be considered. In addition, other pavement options such as bluestone and granite are worth researching and considering as well. I know this has been an extremely long reply, but I sincerely hope it helps you make an informed decision. While there are not as many "genuine clay paving brick" retailers as paver retailers, we are out here. Do your research and you will find us!

Thanks for the explanation, the steps came with the house. It looked ok when I purchased the house. Not so good a few years later. I have asked a few people to look at it, but most of them thought it was OK design, but I had my suspicions. You two are the first people who said otherwise, though I think you are probably correct. So the issue is that paver and concrete landing do not mix. Because one is inflexible and the other is flexible, the construction eventually comes apart? I am thinking that the previous owner had a concrete landing for steps and then decided to redo the patio with pavers (I can't tell what was there before, every neighbor seemed to have redone their porch, and added some brick steps to match. Instead of demolishing the steps and then creating a new one by laying down pavers, they simply put pavers around the existing steps, resulting in this horror? How would a proper step be constructed? I imagine you would step with no concrete steps and build the steps with layers of pavers? What would be the rough ballpark cost of redoing this as a paver step vs pouring out another concrete step by a contractor (is this a $1K, $5k, $10K, etc)? I am mostly interested so I can budget the money for the future project? Paul

On the front elevation I'd get rid of the gable over the garage. All it does is lead your eye to the garage and detract from the main body of the house. It's not a feature. The other thing I'd do is insist on them not doing the pork chop returns. Your house has a historical feel to it and that just screams contemporary mass builder.Below the red arrows point to the pork chop returns. Lastly on the rear, you have one window that isn't consistent with the rest of the windows. The one with the arched top. I'd change it to a transom window top to match the other transom windows. BTW: What is above the window I changed? That's a large blank wall on the exterior.

Sameer, you said you ”had” the pavers attached @ year ago - does that mean you hired somone to do that job for you? If yes, I would call that person / company before doing anything to find out if their work is guaranteed for a certain length of time.