Lock Rekey & Change
When you move into a new apartment on Brook Avenue, take over a lease in Mott Haven, or settle into a brownstone in Melrose, you have no way of knowing how many copies of your key exist — previous tenants, landlords, contractors, ex-partners, or maintenance crews may all still have one. Lock rekeying is the fastest, most cost-effective way to shut out anyone holding an old key without replacing the entire lock hardware. Our mobile locksmith team at Mott Haven Locksmith Bronx reaches you directly, whether you're in the South Bronx, Hunts Point, or Highbridge, so your door is secured before the night is over.
Open 24 hours, 7 days a week · Licensed, bonded & insured
A break-in changes everything. Even if the lock was not visibly damaged, the security of your home or business has been compromised and continuing to use the same keying is a risk you should not accept. Our trained, insured technicians respond around the clock — 24/7, including weekends and holidays — to rekey or swap out lock cylinders on apartment doors, brownstone entries, rear-yard gates, and commercial storefronts. We arrive with the tools and parts to get the job done on the spot, no follow-up appointment needed.
What we do
Available 24/7
Day, night, weekends and holidays — a real local locksmith answers and rolls a fully-stocked van.
Fast local response
Based in The Bronx, we reach the The Bronx area in well under an hour.
Insured & background-checked
Vetted technicians, up-front pricing, and no surprise add-ons when we arrive.
Damage-free entry
We pick and bypass locks the right way, so most lockouts are solved without drilling anything.
What Lock Rekeying Actually Does to Your Cylinder
Inside almost every pin-tumbler lock — the type found on the vast majority of Bronx apartment doors and brownstone entrances — sits a column of spring-loaded pins cut to a specific height pattern that matches your key. Lock rekeying means a technician disassembles the cylinder, swaps those internal pins for a new set matched to a freshly cut key, and reassembles everything in the same housing. The result: every old key becomes useless, and only the new key operates the lock. The lock itself, its grade rating, and its physical installation in the door all stay exactly the same.
This is why rekeying is not a shortcut or a temporary fix — it is a full security reset performed on hardware that is already installed and working. If your Schlage or Kwikset deadbolt is in good condition, rekeying it is every bit as secure as buying a brand-new unit. Where rekeying does not apply is when the lock mechanism is damaged, worn, or was of poor quality to begin with. In those cases our technicians will explain clearly why a full lock change is the better call, and we confirm the exact up-front price before touching anything.
Lock Rekey vs. Full Lock Change: Choosing the Right Fix After a Move or Break-In
After a move, lock rekeying covers the most common scenario: the hardware is intact and in good working order, you simply need the old keys dead. After a break-in, the decision is more nuanced. If the cylinder was drilled, the door frame splintered, or the lock body bent, rekeying the existing cylinder is not the right answer — the compromised parts need to go. Our technicians will inspect the full door assembly, not just the keyhole, and give you an honest assessment. We carry replacement cylinders, deadbolts, and high-security hardware on the van so we can complete a full lock change on the same visit when needed.
There is also a middle-ground situation that comes up often in multi-unit Bronx buildings: a tenant wants every lock on a single door — knob lock and deadbolt — keyed the same so one key opens both. That is called a lock rekey set, and it is a straightforward service our team handles routinely. Landlords managing multiple units in the same building sometimes request a master-key setup alongside individual tenant rekeying — we handle that too, with a clear explanation of how the hierarchy works and what access each key level grants.
Smart Locks, High-Security Cylinders, and Other Hardware We Service
The Bronx rental market has seen a surge in keypad and Bluetooth-enabled smart locks over the past few years, particularly in newly renovated buildings along the 3rd Avenue corridor and in newer co-ops near Yankee Stadium. Smart lock rekey — or more accurately, a credential reset that achieves the same security goal — works differently depending on the brand and model. Some units allow a full factory reset that wipes all stored codes and paired devices; others require a firmware-level procedure. Our technicians are trained on the most common smart lock platforms and will walk you through what the process looks like for your specific hardware before starting work.
For renters and owners who want stronger protection than a standard pin-tumbler provides, we also install and service high-security cylinders with patented keyways — meaning keys cannot be duplicated at a hardware store without authorization. Yale lock rekey service is available for the Yale-brand deadbolts increasingly common in renovated Mott Haven and Port Morris apartments. We also work with Medeco, Mul-T-Lock, and other restricted-keyway systems. If you are unsure what cylinder brand or grade your door currently has, just call 718-679-9884 and describe what you see — we can often identify it from a description and confirm what service applies.
Pricing Factors, What to Expect On-Site, and Why We Quote Up Front
No two service calls are identical, and we do not believe in quoting a flat number before a technician has seen the door. The factors that shape your final price include the number of locks being rekeyed or changed, the brand and security grade of the existing hardware, whether replacement parts are needed, the time of day (overnight and holiday calls involve different labor considerations), and your location within the Bronx relative to our current dispatch point. What we commit to in every case is a confirmed, exact price before any work begins — you will never face a surprise charge at the end of a visit.
When the technician arrives, the process is straightforward: they inspect the lock, confirm the service needed, quote the final price, and — once you approve — complete the work. For a standard door lock rekey on a working cylinder, the on-site time is typically short. For a full lock change or a multi-lock rekey set on a building entrance with multiple cylinders, plan for a longer visit. Either way, our goal is damage-free work wherever possible, meaning no drilling, no forced removal, and no cosmetic harm to your door or frame unless the lock itself is already damaged and removal is unavoidable. We also serve commercial clients — business lock rekey and commercial lock rekey requests for storefronts, offices, and light-industrial spaces in the Bronx are handled with the same mobile, on-site approach. Call 718-679-9884 any time — we answer 24/7.
25 Specific Lock Rekey and Change Services We Provide
Our trained, insured mobile technicians handle all of the following at your Bronx location: apartment door deadbolt rekeying, knob-lock cylinder rekeying, lock rekey set for matched deadbolt-and-knob pairs, brownstone front-door lock rekey, rear-entry and yard-gate lock rekeying, full deadbolt replacement after break-in damage, full knob-lock replacement, mortise lock cylinder rekeying, mortise lock full replacement, high-security cylinder upgrade and installation, Schlage deadbolt rekeying, Kwikset deadbolt rekeying, Yale lock rekey service, Medeco restricted-keyway rekeying, Mul-T-Lock cylinder rekeying, smart lock credential reset and re-pairing, keypad lock code wipe and reprogramming, master-key system setup for multi-unit buildings, landlord turnover rekeying for vacant units, post-break-in lock inspection and cylinder swap, door frame and strike-plate reinforcement during lock change, mailbox lock rekeying or replacement, storage-unit padlock rekeying, commercial storefront lock rekey, and office suite door lock change with new key issuance.
Frequently asked questions
Answers to what our customers ask most. Still unsure? Just call.
How is lock rekeying different from changing the lock?+
Rekeying replaces only the internal pin tumblers inside the existing cylinder, making old keys useless while keeping the same hardware in place. Changing the lock means replacing the entire lock body and cylinder with new hardware. Rekeying is the right call when the existing lock is in good physical condition; a full change is needed when the lock is damaged, worn, or you want to upgrade to a higher security grade.
Can you rekey my lock if I just moved into a new Bronx apartment?+
Yes, and we strongly recommend it. When you take over any apartment or brownstone unit, you cannot verify how many copies of the existing key are in circulation. Our technicians come directly to your address — no need to remove the lock or bring anything to a shop. We rekey the cylinder on-site so your new key is the only one that works, typically within a single visit.
My door was broken into. Should I rekey or replace the lock entirely?+
It depends on the condition of the hardware after the incident. If the cylinder itself is intact and undamaged, rekeying can restore security. If the lock body was forced, drilled, or bent, the compromised parts should be replaced rather than rekeyed. Our technician will inspect the full door assembly when they arrive and give you an honest recommendation with a confirmed price before any work begins.
Do you rekey smart locks in addition to traditional pin-tumbler locks?+
Yes. Smart lock rekey — more precisely, a full credential reset — is a service we provide for keypad and Bluetooth-enabled units. The exact process depends on the brand and model: some require a factory reset that clears all codes and paired devices, others involve a firmware procedure. Our technicians will identify your specific hardware and explain the steps before starting, so you know exactly what will change and what will not.
How much does a lock rekey service cost in the Bronx?+
We do not quote a fixed price before a technician sees the door, because several factors shape the final number: the number of locks being rekeyed, the brand and security grade of the hardware, whether any replacement parts are needed, the time of day, and your location within the Bronx. What we guarantee is a confirmed, exact price before any work starts — you approve it first, and there are no surprise charges at the end of the visit.
Can you rekey all the locks in my building so one key opens every door?+
Yes. We set up master-key systems for multi-unit Bronx buildings — a common request from landlords who want one key for the building entrance and all common areas while individual tenants each have a unique key that only opens their own unit. We walk you through exactly what access each key level provides before we begin, and we carry the necessary components on the van to complete the work in a single visit wherever possible.