Im no pro, but when safety matters, cheaply shouldnt be part of the discussion. To put new railings on the stairs wont be inexpensive, but if youre handy you could install them yourself (with help), and save some $$.

Not that I can think of. If you must make it to code then rip out and new is about it.

What you have now was done using an inexpensive railing, and at that time it was OK to have balusters spaced 6" on center, today a 4" spear cannot pass between the balusters and 6" max opening at the riser.

You have a fair amount of railings there, and with the carpet there it's not going to be cheap but at the same time, it will not break your bank, not to mention if you have smaller kids safety is the main concern.

There are many railing styles out there made of different materials, shop around and go with the best option that fits your budget and make sure it will be done to meet code compliance.

Good luck.

I don't think stairs are the issue, they look code compliant, the only thing is the railing needs to be done to meet the current code. That said, this needs to be done if safety issues are a concern and if you're looking to change the look and style, other than that this is an original railing and doesn't need to be replaced.

I wouldn't go as far as "tens of thousands of dollars" but you looking at approx. 4k give or take for a nice oak railing.

The horizontal handrails on the landings could be replaced with pony walls of the appropriate height. That would be less expensive and easier than building a whole new handrail in those areas. Then you would only have to address the stair rail itself.

In my area, which has so many non-compliant steps and so many houses that if you put in Compliant stairs the house would be uninhabitable because they are so small, you can change the handrail without changing the entire staircase.

I have seen people do infill designs with additional pickets, applying decorative metal mesh, plexiglas and other sorts of things to fill in areas on existing non-compliant railings with varying results.

I agree the stairs are fine as is but that railing needs to go even for just looks it is all wrong. Wondering how it passed house inspection.This will not be cheap but if you are at least a bit capable of DIY could be done that way, I do not see a head height issue at all. Before doing this think about the stairs as far as are they going to stay carpeted or are you going to change the flooring too since doing the rialing will need to be thought out for any change to those stairs like replacing carpet with wood or even changing the carpet.

'It is grandfathered in as built."

And you know that how @User?

ideally this should be changed where it is high enough and safe. unless you wanna line the banister with a lucite or plexiglass, i dont think there really is a way out or cheap way of fixing this issue.