Staircase project

Question from Charity:  I'm looking at buying a house but want to know how much it would approximately be to redo the stairs. They currently go straight up with a full wall along both sides. I want to take the bottom 2/3rd of the stairs and "U" them around and down in order to open up those walls where the bottom of the stairs were originally to see into the living room and dining room from the kitchen. Thanks. 

Jake’s Answer:  Charity, To complete a project like this will require you to “capture” the ceiling and floor space above the new “U” section. This allows for the head room as you walk the stairs. A typical set of stairs requires a foot print of floor space of approximately 4’ wide by 13’ long (8’ high ceiling). So if you want to create a U of 2/3rds, you will need additional floor space of 4’w by 8’ long. Can you take that much out of the ceiling/floor space above this area. If you can, then the project is possible. The cost to do this would depend upon everything that you will impact as a result of the change – this could be pretty extensive. There could be heat ducts, wires, plumbing, framing, and finishes to take into account. I would guess that you would probably be in the neighborhood of $15,000 to $20,000. That is the range we have charged for similar jobs, if this is a similar job.