What happens on handover day?
In this order.
- Book the rekey for the day the old tenant returns the keys, after they are out and before the new tenant arrives.
- List every lock that tenant could open. The table below shows where to look.
- Decide how many keys the next tenant gets, and keep one set for yourself.
- Have ID and proof that you own the property, or the owner's written OK if you manage it.
- Try each new key in each lock before the technician leaves, then hand the keys over with the lease.
Which locks go on the list?
Every lock the outgoing tenant held a key to, not only the unit door.
- The unit door
- Often two cylinders: a deadbolt, and a knob or lever that also takes a key.
- Shared doors
- A front or side door the tenant used to reach the unit. Anyone else who uses that door needs the new key the same day.
- Garage and storage
- The door from the garage into the house, and any keyed locker or shed that came with the unit.
- Mailbox
- The lock on your own compartment can be changed. The master door of a mail panel belongs to Canada Post and is left alone.
One key or several?
One key for every door the tenant uses makes each changeover simpler: the locks are re-pinned to a single new key where their keyways match, and you cut as many copies as the household needs. A lock that cannot be matched gets a new cylinder, priced before the work starts.
Write down how many keys you handed out. At the next changeover you will know how many should come back, though a rekey is still the only way to be sure about copies. How rekeying works
Is the rental a condo suite?
Ask the building whether it wants a copy of the new key, and drop it at the management office the same day. If the tenant also lost a fob, management replaces that; the suite door is the locksmith's part. Condo lock change
Is it a basement unit in a house?
Then two things are rekeyed: the unit's own door, and any door the tenant shared with the rest of the house. The two households can stay on separate keys. The Bathurst Manor page has more on houses with a second unit.
Can a lock be changed during a tenancy?
That is a different job from a changeover. A tenant who wants a lock changed asks the landlord. Speak to each other first, and make sure the tenant is holding a working key the moment the lock is done.
What proof does the technician ask for?
- Owner
- Photo ID, plus a document that ties you to the address: a property tax bill or the lease you signed as landlord.
- Property manager
- ID, plus the owner's written OK or a work order for the unit.
- Tenant
- Photo ID, the lease and your landlord's reply in a text or email.
What do landlords ask before handover day?
The tenant returned every key. Do I still need to rekey?
Yes. Returned keys tell you nothing about copies, and a standard house key can be copied at any hardware store.
The lock feels loose. Rekey or replace?
A loose or stiff lock is better replaced, and between tenants is the easy time to do it. The technician tells you once the lock is in hand. Deadbolt installation
Can it be done in the evening?
Yes, if a slot is free. Visits run until 10:30pm every day, and the time is agreed when you call.
Several units are changing over this month. Can they be priced together?
Give the list of units and the number of locks in each when you call. The price is per lock, and you are quoted for all of them on that call.
Tenant moving out this week?
Book the rekey for handover day. You agree the price per lock on the phone before the visit is booked.
Call (647) 367-3162Open daily, 7am to 10:30pm