Moving into a Brisbane home: should you rekey or replace the locks?

The short answer

Rekey if the locks are in good condition and you just need the old keys to stop working. It's the cheapest fix, it takes about ten minutes per door, and it can put every door on one key at the same time. Replace if a lock is damaged, worn, cheap, or you want a genuine security upgrade — a deadbolt where there wasn't one, a higher-grade cylinder, or a smart lock.

For most people moving into a typical Brisbane house or unit, the answer is: rekey everything, and replace the one or two locks that are actually a problem. This guide is about telling those apart.

What rekeying actually does

Inside a standard pin-tumbler lock is a cylinder with a row of spring-loaded pins. Your key's cuts line those pins up so the cylinder can turn. Rekeying swaps the pins for a different set, matched to a new key. The old keys — every one of them, wherever they are — no longer line anything up, so the lock stays shut for them. The lock body, handle and strike plate stay exactly as they are.

Because the hardware doesn't change, rekeying is fast and inexpensive, and it works on the vast majority of residential locks: knob sets, lever sets, deadbolts, deadlatches and most screen-door locks.

When rekeying is the right call

• You've just moved in — bought or rented — and the locks are sound. You don't know who has keys; you do know the locks work.
• You've lost a key or had one stolen, and the locks themselves are fine.
• A relationship, flatmate or tenancy has ended and you want certainty that a key handed back wasn't copied first.
• You want one key for every door. Front, back, garage side door and screen door all rekeyed to a single key is the most common request we get, and it's cheaper than most people expect.
• It's a new build. Builders often key a whole development alike, or use a construction master key. Rekey at handover.

When replacing is the right call

• The lock is damaged or worn. Sticky, gritty, needs jiggling, key sometimes won't turn — rekeying a tired lock just gives you a tired lock with a new key.
• The lock is low quality. Builder-grade knob sets on external doors are common in older Brisbane homes and units. A proper deadbolt or deadlatch is a real security step up.
• There's no deadbolt at all. A door with only a latch in the handle can be forced far more easily than one with a deadbolt.
• After a break-in. Even if the lock looks intact, forced entry often bends or cracks components inside the mechanism. Replace, and have the technician check the frame and strike plate.
• You want keyless entry. Smart locks and keypad locks are replacements, not rekeys.
• You want a restricted key system. Keys that can't be copied at a hardware store need a matching cylinder.

What it costs in Brisbane

All prices GST inclusive; the callout is charged once per visit, not per door. The full list is on our price list, and for a breakdown of what a locksmith should charge for any job, see our Brisbane locksmith cost guide.

Renting? What Queensland tenancy rules say

In Queensland, the Residential Tenancies and Rooming Accommodation Act sets out who can change locks and when. In plain terms:

• The lessor must provide reasonable security — working locks on external doors and windows — at the start of the tenancy, and supply keys for each tenant named on the lease.
• Neither the tenant nor the lessor may change the locks without the other's agreement, except in an emergency, where a tribunal order applies, or under the domestic and family violence provisions, which allow a tenant to change locks without consent (a key must still be provided to the lessor unless a court order says otherwise).
• Whoever changes a lock must give the other party a key as soon as practicable.

In practice: email the agent, say you'd like to rekey the external doors at your own cost for security, and confirm you'll supply them a key. Most agree the same day — a rekey costs them nothing and the property is better off. Keep the email. If you're unsure of your position, the Residential Tenancies Authority is the authoritative source; this page is general information, not legal advice.

If you've bought, none of this applies — the locks are yours to change on settlement day.

The first-week checklist

1. Count the external doors and the cylinders on them. Front, back, garage side door, laundry, screen doors. Two cylinders on one door (a deadbolt and a handle) count as two.
2. Test each lock with the key you were given. Note anything stiff, loose, or that needs a wiggle — those are your replacement candidates.
3. Check for a deadbolt on the front and back doors. If there isn't one, that's the highest-value upgrade in the house.
4. Decide on one key. Ask for everything to be keyed alike unless you have a reason not to.
5. Renting: email the agent first (see above). Owning: book whenever suits.
6. Have the windows checked while the locksmith is there. Window locks are cheap and are where most opportunistic entries happen in Queensland.

How LockOps handles a move-in

Tell us how many doors and cylinders on the phone and you'll get a starting price for the whole job before we set off; the technician confirms the exact total at your door before starting. The technician arrives with a range of cylinders in the van, so mixed brands can usually be keyed alike on the spot without a second visit. Anything we fit is covered by a 90-day workmanship warranty, and you'll leave with the number of keys you asked for — extra keys cut on site while we're there.