I have to replace the iron railing on my small front porch and steps. The porch is concrete. It's not a big job, but will run into some money, and will impact the appearance of the front of the house, which is brick. The three options for railing that I'm considering are iron, aluminum, and vinyl (ala Home Depot). The price of materials for vinyl is $600-800 from what I can determine; then I'd need to install or pay for installation. My neighbor (who seems to know) says that iron could run me $1500. I had read that aluminum is cheaper than iron, but I'm not sure. I found a website for railingworks.com and I like the looks of their products. I plan to submit a request for a quote from them. I don't care for the white vinyl look as much. Iron or aluminum come in colors, including black. Any information on the relative costs of each of these types, or other comments?

Another question: If there's enough left in the budget, we'd like to have the porch and steps faced in brick or pavers. Obviously it would be best to do this before railing installation, but that may not be possible. Thoughts on uninstalling railing from the concrete at a later date? Terrible idea? Thanks, Steve A