Balcony/Deck without stairs over walkout basement (houses, neighborhood)

[Hebrews12]

I've noticed some houses that have a walkout basement have balconies from the main floor but no stairs off the balcony leading to the backyard. Specifically houses with a slope along the foothills of the Rockies. Why do you think this is so?
Is it because stairs often obstruct some of the sunlight coming into the walkout basement? Or is it for security/privacy; e.g., prevent wildlife from climbing the stairs? (shrugging shoulders).

Seems to me it's a bit of an inconvenience in that if you're on your balcony/deck on the main floor and want to go to the backyard, you have to go into the house, down the stairs to the lower level (walkout basement) and out the sliding door. Also, you have to go through the house on the main floor if you want to carry plants to the balcony or when you want to store your patio furniture for the winter.

Your thoughts? This is new to me so I'm curious why this is done.

[otowi]

I haven't noticed this, but I know there are certain rules about stairs - how steep they can be, etc., and if someone has a back deck but a narrow/small lot like a lot of the newer ones seem to be there might not be enough yard space to put in stairs that are not too steep without extending too far out into a small yard - not sure, though.

[GeoffD]

With a walkout basement, the main level deck is at least 8 feet above grade. I think a lot of people would consider stairs a safety hazard. Particularly with young children or 55+ housing. Not Colorado but my mom had a house with a big sun room addition and a large deck behind that. It was easily 8' above grade and didn't have stairs. Personally, that didn't strike me as unusual in any way. I have no idea why the previous owners made that decision. With an addition and a big deck, it certainly wasn't money.

[COcheesehead]

Exactly the way our house is built though we have no walkout on the ground level. So it’s a large patio suspended about 10 -12 feet off a sloping yard. We did it for several reasons:
Safety. No one can access the house from the back which is very secluded.
Design. Our house is modern and stairs off the back would break up the clean lines
No need. The stairs would lead down to a rocky slope that leads into a ravine that while it looks nice, is rather unusable
Space. Stairs take up patio space.

[Pahn]

My (non-CO) house has a high back deck, a walk-out basement, and no stairs. Those stairs would be hazardous, require more maintenance, and they lead to a not-especially-appealing back yard. If I'm going out back, it's either to sit on the deck, or to do something in the back yard. There's no crossover between those two things. I guess I could grill on the deck (just off of the kitchen) and seat guests on the ground-level patio? But the deck is big enough to hold guests and a grill, and I don't often entertain anyway.

[StealthRabbit]

I never wanted or added external steps to my Daylight deck.
1) No bears climbing up deck stairs to look in my windows and pound on the doors!
2) Safety (Stairs are a hazard, outdoor stairs in mtns (snow / ice) even more hazard.
3) Security

Getting down from outside is no problem (no railing (improved view) + Trampoline is below)
Getting up is no need (no shoes allowed in the house!)
Plenty of food, bathrooms (+trees), water (well) on the lower level.

So far, so good... (~30 yrs in this house)
Previous daylight house had no outdoor deck stairs
Parent's daylight basement house had no stairs to deck (kept the goats and sheep away)

I've never lived in a 'city' / neighborhood / home with a fenced backyard, so the back deck is a pretty private spot, and really great for shooting trap!

[Hebrews12]

Thanks everyone for sharing! Your perspective helps. We're looking at some houses with this scenario and I was trying to think practically how that works.
Do you keep your patio furniture on your balcony/daylight deck all year? Or do you store it somewhere else for winter which would require you bringing it through the house (or hoisting it over the balcony? LOL).

[StealthRabbit]

Originally Posted by Hebrews12

...
...(or hoisting it over the balcony? LOL).

I use my all-terrain forklift with telescoping boom, (Handy for firewood placement, and setting trusses too)

If you have a big deck and lots of furniture, I would use a trapdoor, and store it underneath, covered and protected. I use fiberglass layup for my deck surfaces (Like a boat deck). 100% weatherproof and no maint.
You could also build a dismantled enclosure on the deck for furniture storage. I often use thick Core-ex (hollow Plastic plywood in 4x8 sheets), very light, cheap, and weatherproof.

I would not leave my outdoor furniture outside in winter, too much wind and likely to crash the furniture through many picture windows. We know when we are having a real gale, if the neighbor's cast iron lawn furniture blows by.

[TCHP]

I use my porch furniture through the winter. Granted, its considerably less than summer, but it still get used. However, I don't have a deck. I have a covered porch that wraps around three side of my house s my furniture is considerably more protected than it would be on a deck.

[cowboyxjon]

Cost (cheaper to not pay someone to build stairs) or lot size may be part of it.

I live in half of a duplex near the foothills and the homes originally had decks with no stairs over the door to a walkout basement. In fact, I replaced the deck about 2 years ago and made it slightly larger, but opted to NOT add stairs even though one of my neighbors thought I was crazy for doing so, since they added stairs.

I did not want stairs because I had lived in the house for a long time without them and realized that it wasn’t an issue for me. Also, it’s more secure in the sense that it’s difficult for anyone to access the sliding glass door on the main level, since there are no steps up to the deck, and the deck is high off of the ground. Finally, my lot size is small and my yard is small, and steps would have taken up more space in the yard and I didn’t want to give that space up, as I have a garden and most of what I grow requires full sun.

We have a concrete pad on the ground level so we have furniture there as well and use that in addition to the deck.