California Locksmith Services

Homes and doors across California

In the Census Bureau's 2024 American Community Survey, about 41 percent of California's roughly 14.9 million homes were built from 1950 to 1979, against about 32 percent nationally, and the median California home dates from 1977, four years before the national median. In San Francisco the median is 1946 and about 45 percent predate 1940. About 24 percent of California homes are in buildings with five or more units, against about 19 percent nationwide.

• Postwar tract houses. A 1960s ranch house may still have its original entry hardware, with keys held by past owners. Rekeying retires those keys without replacing sound hardware.
• Pre-war city buildings. Some older doors are cut for a mortise lock, whose body sits in a pocket in the door edge, so a replacement lock has to fit that pocket.
• Newer subdivisions. In Riverside County the median home dates from 1990, and about half were built that year or later. Before buying a smart lock, check the door's bore hole and backset against the lock's listed fit.

How California's climate affects locks and keys

• The coast. Salt air is hard on exterior hardware; use a dry lock lubricant rather than oil, which collects grit. NOAA tracks tidal flooding at La Jolla and San Francisco, so clean and test any lock that has sat in seawater.
• Santa Ana winds. NOAA notes these winds can gust to 80 mph and are often tied to the most destructive wildfires. Clean ash and dust from a gritty keyway rather than force the key.
• Deserts. NOAA ranks the southern deserts among the nation's hottest and driest; the southeast's annual average tops 70°F. Check a keypad's or smart lock's rated operating temperature before mounting it on a sun-facing door.
• The mountains. The highest elevations average below 40°F, and ice can seal a keyway. Use a lock de-icer or a warmed key; hot water can refreeze.

Garage doors and power outages

Since July 1, 2019, Health and Safety Code § 19892 has barred selling or installing a residential automatic garage door opener without a battery backup designed to work during a power outage, and a replacement garage door cannot be connected to an opener that lacks one. The Los Angeles Fire Department's evacuation guidance says to close the garage door, leave it unlocked and disconnect the opener in case the power fails.

Renting in California: locks, keys and rekeying

• Required locks. Civil Code § 1941.3 requires landlords to install and maintain an operable dead bolt on each main swinging entry door, extending at least 13/16 inch beyond the strike edge into the jamb; horizontal sliding doors are excluded. Existing dead bolts of at least a half inch qualify, as do certain older thumb-turn locks until they first need repair or replacement.
• Windows and shared doors. The section also requires working locks on windows designed to open (louvered, casement and out-of-reach windows excepted) and code-compliant locks on exterior doors to common areas in multifamily buildings. Tenants must report an inoperable dead bolt or window lock, and the landlord is liable only if it stays unfixed a reasonable time after notice. Buildings designated historically significant are exempt.
• Abuse or violence. Under § 1941.5, when the accused person is not a tenant of the same unit, the landlord must change the locks at its own expense within 24 hours of a written request with a protective order, police report or other listed documentation. Under leases signed on or after January 1, 2011, a tenant whose landlord misses that deadline may change the locks, must notify the landlord within 24 hours and provide a key, and is reimbursed within 21 days. Section 1941.6 covers a restrained person who is a tenant of the same unit.
• Lockouts by a landlord. Section 789.3 bars a landlord from willfully changing the locks or using a bootlock to force a tenant out. A landlord who does is liable for actual damages plus up to $100 a day (at least $250 per cause of action), and the prevailing party is awarded attorney's fees.

This is general information, not legal advice.

Where we take requests in California

California Locksmith Pros takes service requests from homes, businesses and drivers in California.

• Los Angeles
• San Diego
• San Jose
• Sacramento

Elsewhere in California, use the request form with your ZIP code.

Car keys and consumer complaints

• Lost every key to your car? Penal Code § 466.6 requires anyone who makes an ignition key other than by copying an existing one to record your name, address, date of birth and driver's license or ID number, plus the vehicle's plate, VIN and description, on a work order you sign, and to keep it for two years. Bring your license and registration for car key replacement.
• Complaints about a business. The Attorney General's Public Inquiry Unit takes consumer complaints online or by mail. It cannot act as your lawyer and may refer a complaint to another agency.