I’ve seen a lot of ridiculous staircases in my time — stairs so steep, so narrow, and so poorly thought out they might as well come with a warning label. These designs don’t just look intimidating — they actively scare away anyone over 45 (who are the buyers with the money by the way) who hasn’t been training for the Olympics. Picture this: a pregnant woman, exhausted from the day, trying to carry a limp toddler up one of these staircases with one arm, the other gripping the rail for dear life. Or think about the simple act of bringing in groceries — arms full, feet uncertain, and no room for error. These aren’t rare, one-off design quirks. They’re baked into the way we build homes now — and they’re completely crazy.
Legal, But So What??? … They’re Still Not Safe.
Why Are Stairs Getting So Long? Follow the Money (and the Zoning)
Minimum Code Is Just That — the Bare Minimum
What My Safe Stair Design Looks Like
We Can Build Better — But It Starts With Awareness
Legal, But So What??? … They’re Still Not Safe.
As a professional mortgage agent and home inspector who also understands the economics and design principles behind residential construction, I’ve come to a conclusion that might sound alarmist — but isn’t:
Yes, they meet code. Yes, they pass inspections. But that doesn’t mean they’re designed with real-world safety in mind. And unless we start rethinking what makes a staircase safe, we’re going to keep seeing the same heartbreaking accidents in homes that, on paper, “passed.”
Let’s talk about why today’s staircases are longer, steeper, and more dangerous than ever — and how our housing policies are quietly making the problem worse.
16 Steps to Disaster
According to the Ontario Building Code, a flight of stairs can have up to 16 risers before it needs a landing. That’s a vertical drop of nearly 10 feet — or in more relatable terms, like falling from the roof of a one-storey house.
Now, imagine slipping on that top step. You wouldn’t just trip — you’d tumble. You’d bounce, roll, and accelerate down each riser, with no flat surface to slow you down or break the fall. Every step becomes another point of impact. It’s terrifying. You may die. And yet, the design is perfectly legal.
From my perspective — one part inspector, one part economist, one part advocate for safe housing — this is asking for trouble. In fact, I believe no staircase should ever have more than five or six risers before there’s a landing or a change in direction. A simple 90-degree turn or mid-point landing can make all the difference in interrupting a fall and potentially saving a life.
Why Are Stairs Getting So Long? Follow the Money (and the Zoning)
If you’re wondering why we’re seeing more and more of these unsafe stair designs, the answer isn’t just architecture — it’s economics. Specifically, it’s the economics of land.
Over the past decade, land prices in most urban and suburban markets have increased by over 500%. Not the price of the home — just the land it sits on. This explosive growth isn’t random; it’s the direct result of restrictive land-use policies, outdated zoning laws, and a planning mindset that still thinks like it’s 1970.
So, what happens when land gets more expensive and harder to build on?
Builders stop building out. They start building up.
And when you cram a 2,500 sq ft house onto a 20 ft lot, you end up with a home that’s three or even four storeys tall — and a staircase that stretches like a ladder through the middle of it.
To save space, builders push the staircases into narrow wells with steep angles, minimum tread depths, and no room for landings. The design becomes more about space efficiency and square footage optimization than about safety and long-term livability.
Minimum Code Is Just That — the Bare Minimum
The Building Code is not a gold standard. It’s a minimum legal requirement, and unfortunately, a lot of builders treat it as the maximum they’re willing to provide. That’s a problem.
I call minimum code the lowest quality crap we can legally sell to the public as something good.
Code doesn’t mean good. It means it’s not allowed to be any worse.
Think of it this way: the code allows 255 mm (10″) for stair tread depth, which technically accommodates the average adult foot — barely. But when you factor in shoes, boots, or someone carrying a laundry basket, that 10 inches doesn’t go very far. Toes overhang. Balance shifts forward. Falls become more likely.
Add a steep rise, poor lighting, no mid-point landing, and maybe a slippery hardwood tread — and what you’ve got isn’t a staircase. It’s a chute.
What My Safe Stair Design Looks Like
A truly safe staircase — one I’d feel confident recommending to my clients — has:
- A maximum of 5 to 6 risers before a change in direction or a landing
- Wider treads (Minimum 12 inches) that fully support the entire foot
- Gentle rise (under 7 inches) that doesn’t demand a climbing motion
- Strong, continuous handrails on both sides
- Visual contrast on nosings to help people judge depth and distance
These aren’t expensive changes. But they require a shift in mindset: from building for what the code allows to building for how people actually move and live in a home.
We Can Build Better — But It Starts With Awareness
Most homeowners don’t think about their stairs until something goes wrong. Most buyers are focused on countertops, closets, and curb appeal — not the pitch of their staircase. And builders? Many are just trying to squeeze a house onto an unforgiving lot and stay under budget.
But this is where professionals like us come in. Inspectors, agents, mortgage advisors, and appraisers have an opportunity — and in my opinion, a responsibility — to talk about safety before someone gets hurt.
My Final Thoughts: Don’t Wait for the Fall
We’ve normalized unsafe stair design in modern housing. We’ve made it acceptable to fall two storeys in your own home because “that’s just how homes are built now.”
But we can do better.
We need to educate clients, challenge builders, and push for zoning reform that allows more out so we don’t have to keep building up. Let’s rethink what safe means — and stop mistaking “meets code” for “meets common sense.”
Because when it comes to stairs, that one step could be the difference between walking away and never getting up.
