I'm redoing my stairs to have oak treads, oak handrails, and wrought iron balusters. This is the basic idea of my stair layout and what I want to do. First 9 steps are open on the left and last 6 steps are closed on both sides. I've got the treads and risers installed, and it's time for the handrails and balusters. The instructions I've found on the web for installing wrought iron balusters all assume a remodel, keeping the existing railing and just swapping out the balusters. That way you've already got aligned holes and it's a relative piece of cake. What I need help with: 1. How do I cut the handrail so it's got the right angle between the top wall and the bottom newel post? Do I lay the bannister along the front edges of the treads, use that as my angle, and then just raise it up 34-38" and attach it to the wall and newel? Easier way? 2. How do I align the holes in the treads and bannister? Can I install the bannister first, then drill the hole in the tread, use a level to make it plumb into the top, and then use a jig spacer from there? Easier way? 3. I need flat shoes to cover the holes in the treads. What about the holes in the underside of the bannister? You can buy angled shoes, but they are 45 degrees, and my bannister won't be at exactly a 45 degree angle. Do I omit shoes on the top? If so, how do I cover the ugly hole/epoxy? 4. On the upper (closed) portion of the stairs, the PO never installed a handrail. The easiest fix would be to add a wall portion with returns on top and bottom. But in reading the stair code, I think I am supposed to make the whole thing continuous, i.e., jog the handrail in when it hits the wall, then continue it on up to the top. Can I get away with a discontinuous one? I'm having a hard time envisioning how the balusters would work if I did the bendy one (i.e., can I maintain the

I understand that OP needs it to be cheap until closing because this is a lender requirement (not unusual) and if it is fixed before closing, it becomes a fixture and stays with the property even if the buyer doesn't close. CONSIDER: A solution to this would be a rehab type loan rather than the typical purchase loan. Benefit to the buyer is they don't need to resort to expensive hard money type loan as mentioned up thread. Also it gives the buyer the TIME to figure out a permanent solution. The buyer can close right away on a rehab loan. The disadvantage to a rehab loan is that the interest rate is slightly higher than your typical purchase mortgage. Something to explore.

This needs a rail on the close side or it is a safety hazard, and the hand rail needs to be able to go continuously from top to bottom, so it would be helpful to see up the stairs. What style are you going for? Would a classic wood railing in trim color not work? You could go black metal if you wanted something a bit more unique, but you'd need other black metal accents to compliment it.

Stax, if I was working, I would have ZERO issues paying to redesign and install all necessary precautions. However, I am unemployed and have been since April, along with 5,000,000 other Californians... I am concerned about keeping my OWN home. If they had allowed this 2 years ago, it wouldn't be an issue now but they felt it was unneeded... well, now it IS needed, but they will still be opposed. I simply asked if anyone happened to know if we could install without needing to rebuild... I appreciate your consideration in responding, I have taken your suggestion into consideration but I know my in-laws and what their opinions will be. If you can offer nothing more constructive than berating me for my concern for MY financial situation, I offer you the option to not respond. To Seabornman and Lyndee Lee, thank you. We will need to contact a fabricator and see what he has to say. I appreciate everyone's time.