You Got the Keys. Now Who Else Has Them?
Closing day in Los Angeles usually ends the same way — the seller’s agent hands you a manila envelope with a few keys rattling around inside. Maybe there’s a front door key, a back door key, and a mystery one that might open the garage side gate. What that envelope doesn’t tell you is how many copies are floating around the city. The previous owner’s housekeeper, the dog walker, the contractor who redid the kitchen back in 2019, the neighbor across the street who watered plants during their Palm Springs trips — any of them could still have a working key.
We’ve been rekeying homes all over LA for years, from the hillside bungalows in Silver Lake to the mid-century ranches in Sherman Oaks, and the story is always the same. New owners assume the locks are “theirs” the moment escrow closes. They aren’t. That’s where a proper lock rekey in Los Angeles comes in — same hardware, brand new key, old keys go straight to useless.
Why Rekeying Beats Replacing (Most of the Time)
Homeowners in neighborhoods like Mar Vista and Highland Park often call us asking for a full lock replacement. In most cases, they don’t need it. If your existing deadbolts are decent quality — Schlage, Kwikset SmartKey, Baldwin — we can pop the cylinder, swap the pins, and cut you a fresh key for a fraction of what new hardware costs. Rekeying takes about 15 minutes per lock once we’re on site.
Replacement makes sense when the hardware is cheap builder-grade stuff from the 90s, the lock is sticking, or you want to upgrade to a smart lock. Otherwise, rekey and save the cash for that patio you’ve been eyeing.
7 Local Tips From the Locksmith HQ Team
1. Do it Before the First Night
Seriously. Don’t unpack, don’t order pizza, don’t even walk the dog first. Book the rekey for the same day you get the keys. If you closed on a Friday afternoon in Studio City and movers arrive Saturday morning, call us Friday evening — we run 24/7 for exactly this reason.
2. Count Every Entry Point
Front door is obvious. People forget the side gate padlock, the pool shed in the backyard, the interior door from the garage, the mailbox on the curb. Walk the full perimeter with a notebook. Homes in places like Cheviot Hills and Westwood often have four or five keyed locks people never think about.
3. Ask About HOA Keys
If you bought in a condo or townhome near DTLA, Koreatown, or along Wilshire, there’s often a separate key or fob for common areas, mailrooms, and gyms. Those go through the HOA, not us — but make that call the same week.
4. Key Everything Alike
One of our favorite little upgrades. We can rekey every exterior lock in the house to work with a single key. No more juggling a keyring the size of a jailer’s at the front porch. This is especially handy for larger homes in Encino or Brentwood where the front, back, and side doors all use different hardware.
5. Check the Deadbolt Strike Plate
While we’re there, we always look at the strike plate and the screws holding it. LA has a real problem with kick-in burglaries — LAPD crime maps show spikes every few months in areas from Van Nuys to Echo Park. If the plate is held in by half-inch builder screws, we swap them for three-inch ones on the spot. Free upgrade, huge difference.
6. Consider a Second Deadbolt on Side Doors
That door from the garage into the laundry room? It usually has the weakest lock in the whole house. Ask about deadbolt installation in los angeles if yours is just a push-button knob. Takes about 30 minutes and closes a serious gap.
7. Keep a Spare Somewhere Smart
Not under the mat. Not in the fake rock by the bougainvillea. Give a copy to a trusted friend who lives nearby, or install a small combination lockbox tucked out of sight. We’ve helped enough lockout calls from folks stranded outside their own homes in Los Feliz and Mid-City to know hidden keys never stay hidden long.
How the Visit Actually Goes
You call, we pull up in a marked van, usually within 30-40 minutes depending on traffic on the 405 or 101. Tech checks your locks, confirms they’re rekeyable, and gets to work at your kitchen table or right at the door. You get new keys in hand before we leave, and the old ones become souvenirs. That’s it. No mess, no drilling, no drama.
If you want to see everything else we handle across the city, our full list of Los Angeles locksmith services covers rekeys, lockouts, smart locks, and more.
Welcome to the Neighborhood
A lock rekey Los Angeles homeowners can count on is the cheapest peace of mind you’ll buy all year. Give the Locksmith HQ team a ring at (818) 398-9391 whenever you’re ready — we’ll handle the rest so you can get back to picking paint colors.
