Rekeying a lock takes 10 to 15 minutes per cylinder and costs a fraction of replacing the hardware. Despite being one of the simplest, most cost-effective security upgrades you can make, most Albuquerque homeowners only think about it after something goes wrong. Here are five situations that should prompt a call to your locksmith today—not tomorrow.
1. You Just Moved Into a New Home
This is the single most important rekeying scenario and the one most often skipped. When you buy or rent a new home, you have no idea how many copies of your keys exist. The previous owner may have given out copies to family members, housecleaners, contractors, neighbors, or a property manager. The sellers may have forgotten about a spare key under a flower pot that never got turned in at closing.
Rekeying all exterior locks on move-in day is cheap home security insurance. We regularly rekey three to five locks on new Albuquerque homes in a single visit—it takes less than an hour and eliminates every unknown key that existed before you arrived.
2. You Lost a Key
A lost house key is a rolling security threat until the lock is rekeyed. You don’t know where the key is, who found it, or whether anyone knows which house it belongs to. Even if the odds of a deliberate break-in are low, a rekeying is so inexpensive that there is no practical argument for waiting.
Note: rekeying is the right response to a lost key. If you’re locked out because keys are inside the house, that’s a lockout situation—we handle those too, and can rekey on the same visit if you want to prevent the scenario from repeating.
3. A Tenant or Roommate Moved Out
Keys returned at the end of a lease can be copied—and there’s no way to know if they were. Even on amicable separations, it’s sound practice to rekey after any tenancy ends. For landlords, rekeying between tenants is not just good security practice: it demonstrates to your next tenant that you take their safety seriously.
Rekeying (not replacing) is ideal for this situation because the existing hardware stays in place. You simply get new keys at the end of the process.
4. After a Break-In or Attempted Break-In
If your home was burglarized or someone attempted entry, the locks that were compromised need immediate attention. Even if the deadbolt wasn’t the entry point, a professional should inspect all locks for damage. A burglar who knows your address may return and try a different entry point.
After a break-in, you should also consider upgrading from a standard deadbolt to a Grade 1 deadbolt with a reinforced strike plate. We stock Schlage and Kwikset Grade 1 hardware and can install during the same rekeying visit.
5. An Employee or Contractor Had Access
Housecleaners, pet sitters, repair technicians, family members who no longer need access—any time key access is extended to someone and later revoked, that key may still exist somewhere. Standard practice in any security audit is to assume that any distributed key may have been duplicated.
Rekeying is faster and cheaper than the anxiety of wondering whether a past keyholder might someday show up uninvited.
How Much Does Rekeying Cost in Albuquerque?
Rekeying pricing depends on the number of locks, the brand and condition of the cylinders, and whether any locks need to be keyed alike (to use the same key across all doors). We provide an upfront estimate before any work begins. Most Albuquerque homes with three to five exterior locks can be fully rekeyed in a single visit under an hour.
Call us at (505) 818-0720 or book online to schedule a rekeying visit at a time that works for you.