Is rekeying different from new locks?

Yes. Rekeying keeps your existing lock bodies and changes the internals so a new key works and the old ones do not. New locks mean new hardware on the door, which makes sense when a cylinder is worn, corroded or does not match the rest of the house.

Can everything be put on one key?

Usually, yes — that is the normal goal. Every exterior lock, the garage side door and any gate or shed lock can be brought onto a single new key, as long as the hardware is in good enough condition. Where something is too far gone, the locksmith will explain it before any work starts.

I bought a condo in Fort Lauderdale. Can my unit door be rekeyed?

Your own unit door is normally straightforward. Shared entry doors, mailboxes and amenity locks in HOA-governed buildings are usually controlled by management, so check with them first — that is common across South Florida's condo stock.

Does my waterfront house need this sooner than most?

Often, yes. Constant salt air along Fort Lauderdale's canals and coast corrodes lock cylinders and gate hardware quickly, so exterior locks on waterfront properties tend to show wear earlier. The locksmith will tell you which ones can be rekeyed and which are better replaced.

Are locksmiths licensed in Florida?

Florida has no statewide locksmith license and no state licensing board. The trade is regulated at county or municipal level instead, and Broward County has historically required local locksmith registration. Rules change, so verify current requirements with the county or city consumer protection or licensing office.

What do I need to have ready?

Government-issued photo identification plus something tying you to the address, such as the deed, a lease or a utility bill. The locksmith confirms entitlement before working on the property, and it is worth knowing how many keys you want cut.

Rekey a new home in Fort Lauderdale, FL

You just moved in. The locks work fine, but the keys are not really yours yet. The seller had keys. So did the previous tenant, the letting agent, the cleaner, the contractor who finished the kitchen. Copies get cut and handed out over the years, and nobody keeps a list. There is no way to count them.

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Rekeying fixes that. The lock stays on the door. The inside of the cylinder is changed so the old keys no longer turn, and you get fresh keys cut for everyone in the house. In Fort Lauderdale this comes up constantly, because so much of the single-family stock is 1950s to 1970s concrete block and stucco that has passed through several owners, and because condos, townhomes and gated communities make up such a large share of the market here. Older hardware also tends to be mismatched — a front door on one key, a garage side door on another, a padlock on the gate that nobody has a key for at all.

While you wait — please don't

Do not assume the keys you were handed are the only ones. Keys from a closing or a move-in packet are the keys someone chose to give you, not every key that exists.
Do not leave the gate, shed and garage side door for later. Those are the doors people forget, and an old key to any one of them still gets somebody onto your property.
Do not force a stiff lock to prove it still works. Salt air and humidity are hard on exterior cylinders here, and leaning on a key that is binding is how it snaps off inside the lock.
Do not wait until the week you move in. Summer is moving and rental turnover season in Florida, and rekeying work stacks up then, so it is worth booking rather than leaving.

What the technician does

Identification firstThe locksmith will ask for identification and proof you are entitled to the property — a deed, a lease or similar. That happens before anything is opened or worked on.
A walk around every exterior lockFront door, back door, side door, garage side door, any gate or shed. The locksmith counts what is there and checks the condition of each one before quoting.
The price, before any work startsYou get an estimate for the whole job up front. Nothing begins until you have approved it.
Rekeyed to one new keyThe cylinders are changed internally so every exterior lock answers to the same new key. Old keys stop working from that point on.
Replacement where the hardware is past itIf a cylinder is corroded, worn out or mismatched with the rest of the house, the locksmith will tell you and can fit new hardware instead of rekeying it.
Keys cut for the householdYou say how many keys you need and they are cut on the spot — one for each adult, plus a spare if you want one.

Why this happens in Fort Lauderdale, FL

Fort Lauderdale is hard on locks. Salt air off the Atlantic and off the city's hundreds of miles of canals and Intracoastal frontage corrodes cylinders, hinges and deadbolts far faster than inland, and waterfront hardware often needs service years earlier than the manufacturer would suggest. Add a hot, humid climate most of the year and wood doors and frames swell, so deadbolts bind against their strike plates. Grit and blown sand near the beach work into keyways too. So a rekey visit in Victoria Park, Rio Vista, Coral Ridge or Galt Ocean Mile often turns up at least one exterior lock that is better replaced than rekeyed — and that is a decision you make, after you hear the price.

Timing matters here as well. Lock work runs year-round in Florida rather than spiking with a first freeze, but volume rises with the summer moving and rental turnover season, and again from November through April when snowbirds return and open up homes that have sat empty. Hurricane season runs June 1 to November 30, and plenty of owners use the run-up to it as the moment to sort out gate hardware and tired exterior locks on older properties. If you have just taken the keys to a place in Flagler Village, Sailboat Bend, Imperial Point or Croissant Park, booking the rekey early is easier than chasing it in the middle of that.

Questions people ask

Is rekeying different from new locks?: Yes. Rekeying keeps your existing lock bodies and changes the internals so a new key works and the old ones do not. New locks mean new hardware on the door, which makes sense when a cylinder is worn, corroded or does not match the rest of the house.
Can everything be put on one key?: Usually, yes — that is the normal goal. Every exterior lock, the garage side door and any gate or shed lock can be brought onto a single new key, as long as the hardware is in good enough condition. Where something is too far gone, the locksmith will explain it before any work starts.
I bought a condo in Fort Lauderdale. Can my unit door be rekeyed?: Your own unit door is normally straightforward. Shared entry doors, mailboxes and amenity locks in HOA-governed buildings are usually controlled by management, so check with them first — that is common across South Florida's condo stock.
Does my waterfront house need this sooner than most?: Often, yes. Constant salt air along Fort Lauderdale's canals and coast corrodes lock cylinders and gate hardware quickly, so exterior locks on waterfront properties tend to show wear earlier. The locksmith will tell you which ones can be rekeyed and which are better replaced.
Are locksmiths licensed in Florida?: Florida has no statewide locksmith license and no state licensing board. The trade is regulated at county or municipal level instead, and Broward County has historically required local locksmith registration. Rules change, so verify current requirements with the county or city consumer protection or licensing office.
What do I need to have ready?: Government-issued photo identification plus something tying you to the address, such as the deed, a lease or a utility bill. The locksmith confirms entitlement before working on the property, and it is worth knowing how many keys you want cut.

One call

One Call Locksmiths is a referral and scheduling service that arranges work with independent locksmiths across all fifty states — we are not the locksmith and we do not perform the work. Call (866) 690-5848 to arrange a rekey in Fort Lauderdale; the estimate is free, and the locksmith gives you the price for your approval before any work starts.

Call now · (866) 690-5848

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