We currently have a small cement step down from either of our outside doors going out onto a large cement pad. We want to install brick pavers and expand the patio. We also want to expand the step to a two-step with pavers (see picture for example).

Here's what we've heard from different people:

Person One: You can install pavers right on top of the existing cement patio, tie together new cement with the old (our "old" cement patio is only a year old) and install pavers on them. You want to tie the new and old concrete before putting pavers on top so that they don't settle at different rates or levels. Not a big deal and it make a really solid foundation for your brick.

Person Two: The stairs would put undue weight on the current cement patio. We'd hae to rip out the entire current cement pad. Then, if we do that, we may as well install new pavers over the whole thing (rather than only installing new pavers as a border to the current cement pad). Price to rip up cement and install pavers and stairs in the space where there is a current cement pad: ~$10,000. Also, you don't want to install pavers on top of cement. It doesn't look professional. You want to lay a solid base for pavers, but you don't want people to see that it's sitting on top of the concrete.