If you manage rental units, rekeying between tenants should be part of every turnover checklist, not an afterthought. Call Now: (415) 205-5718 to schedule it before your next move-in, or keep reading for what it involves and what it protects you from.
Every previous tenant, and often their friends, family, or an ex who “just needs to grab a box,” could still be holding a working key to your unit. Rekeying between tenants closes that gap for the cost of a service call and a per-lock rekey fee, which is a lot cheaper than dealing with a break-in or a liability claim later.
Why Rekeying Between Tenants Matters for Landlords
You have no way of knowing how many copies of a key exist by the time a tenant moves out. Roommates, contractors, dog walkers, and previous owners can all end up with one. If something happens in that unit after a new tenant moves in and the old lock was never rekeyed, that’s a liability question you don’t want to answer in front of an insurance adjuster or a lawyer. Rekeying between tenants is the cheapest insurance policy available to a landlord, and in many California rental situations it’s treated as standard due diligence, not an optional upgrade.
What the Job Involves
A technician opens each existing lock cylinder in the unit, swaps the internal pins to match a new key, and tests every door before leaving. The lock hardware itself doesn’t change, so there’s no repainting or refitting the door. If a lock is old, sticky, or damaged rather than just needing new pins, we’ll flag it and quote a lock change instead, since a rekey can’t fix a mechanically worn lock.
Pricing for Rekeying Between Tenants
Rekeying runs $55–$95 per lock, plus the $29 service call. For a building with multiple units turning over regularly, we can set up a master key system so you keep one master key for maintenance access while each unit’s tenant key stays unique to them. For office buildings, see our guide to master keying for multi-tenant buildings.
When to Schedule It
The right time is between move-out and move-in, ideally the same week, so the unit is never sitting with an unknown number of working keys floating around. If you manage several properties, our commercial locksmith team can schedule recurring turnover rekeys so it’s one less thing to track manually.
Documenting the Rekey for Your Records
For landlords managing multiple units, it helps to keep a simple log of when each unit was last rekeyed between tenants, along with the date and which locks were done. If a dispute ever comes up about building security or a claim about who had access to a unit, having a dated record of the rekey is far more useful than trying to remember it later. We can provide a receipt noting the service date and address for exactly this purpose. For more ways to secure a rental between tenants, see our home security tips for 2026.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is rekeying between tenants legally required in San Francisco?
Requirements vary by lease and building, but rekeying at turnover is widely treated as standard landlord practice and a reasonable safety step regardless of a specific mandate.
Can you rekey while the unit is occupied by the outgoing tenant?
We generally rekey after move-out, once the unit is empty, so there’s no confusion about who holds which key during the transition.
Do you rekey the mailbox lock too?
Yes, that’s a separate line item; see mailbox lock replacement if the mailbox lock itself needs changing rather than rekeying.
How fast can you turn around a rekey before a new tenant moves in?
Most units get done same-day or next-day depending on when you call; we’re open 7 AM–11:30 PM, 7 days a week, so weekend turnovers aren’t a problem.
Have a turnover coming up? Call Now: (415) 205-5718 and we’ll get it scheduled.
Licensed locksmith (#7929) · Open 7 AM–11:30 PM, 7 days a week · 15–20 min response in SF