It is a scary statistic that only 10% of people who move into a new rental property change their door locks at the start of the lease. As someone who is about to leave home and move into their first rental, you may think nothing about accepting the keys from your landlord without question. The problem is, this lack of thought could put your belongings at risk of burglary. When it comes to changing door locks before moving in, there are the two main points you need to know.

Who Else Has A Key To Your Door?

During a residential tenancy, it is common for your landlord to retain a set of keys to your front door. This is standard practice in case they need to enter the home to do emergency repairs or to regain control of the property if you move out without giving notice. The problem is, how many other people aside from your trusty landlord has a set of keys to your door? For example, did the last tenant travel often and give a spare key to the neighbor? Did the tenant before them have several flatmates who were given key copies? You never really know how many people have copies of your key.

If you are not certain how old the door lock is, and who else has a key, you must discuss this issue with the landlord before you move in. The good news is there are several ways you can resolve this issue.

Keeping Your Home Protected

If the landlord states that the door lock was changed just prior to your lease starting, you are entitled to ask for evidence of this fact. If the door lock is not new, then ask your landlord if they will replace it at their cost before you start the tenancy.

If you want to change the door lock at your expense after you move in, you need to check the law for your state. You can change the lock, provided you give your landlord a copy of the new key, but in some states, you must get written permission from your landlord before you do so.

A locksmith service provided by companies like Lockman can change your door lock in one easy appointment, and they can provide you with the extra keys you need to give to your landlord. Just make sure you are following legal rules before you make any lock changes since you don't want to start out your first lease on the wrong side of your landlord.