removing carpet from stairs

[abseptember17]

I'm thinking of removing the carpet from the stairs in our house.  At first, I wasn't going to even consider it b/c I didn't think the upper stairs had treads/risers but to my surprise, they do.  All threads and risers are finished wood in the same stain color you can see on the bottom stairs.  Before doing anything, I want to get an idea of how much work/$ will be involved, as well as get some input on whether you think it would look good w/o carpet. 
1) What would I need to do to finish off the carpet on the top stair?
2) Any thoughts on what the condition of the threads will be like?  The current carpet is fairly new and in good condition.  I don't know if the stairs have always had carpet on them or not.  The home is 30 years old. 
3) Do you think it would look nice without the carpet?
4) If so, would you paint the risers white?  Would you also paint the balusters white?

I'm thinking this would be a fall/winter project.

Please excuse the clutter and baby gate.  Last photo is just to show what the rail/balusters look like upstairs over the living room.

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[simpsongal]

I love white risers and spindles. I think it would look nice in your home. If you remove the carpet, you're going to have lots of staple holes all over the stairs (just a heads up). Since the carpet has been there so long, there may be some discoloration between the exposed and covered wood from the sun. Hopefully it will be minor.

I want to add a runner to our stairs (they're very similar to yours). I prefer a narrower runner so you can see the stairs and treads on both sides. If you find that you miss having carpet, that's always an option. I think a slight pattern is very elegant for a stair runner to.

[simpsongal]

One last thought - have you thought about adding a railing to the right wall? I think it would balance the look of your stairs. Plus, it's nice (and safer) not to have a break between the railings, as you do on the left side.