Lock Rekeying in Boston, MA

Why a move-out calls for a rekey

Boston neighborhoods such as Roxbury and Jamaica Plain are closely tied to the three-decker, a light wood-frame building with usually one apartment per floor. When one household leaves, its keys may open more than its own unit: the shared front door or the separate entrance for the upper floors, and often a rear porch door. A move-out rekey should include that shared entry. Rekeying resets each existing cylinder so the old keys stop working, while the lock bodies, trim and doors stay as they are.

Older doors add a wrinkle. On a pre-war door with a mortise lock, a swap to a modern cylindrical lock can mean altering the door itself, so rekeying or repairing the mortise lock is often the simpler first step.

Rules that touch keys in Boston rentals

This is general information, not legal advice.

• Keys from the owner. The State Sanitary Code, 105 CMR 410.270, requires owners to give occupants keys to the main entry, their own unit and common areas. Rekeying a shared entry means new keys for every household that uses it.
• Lock costs at move-in. Under M.G.L. c. 186, § 15B, the purchase and installation cost of a key and lock is one of the few charges a landlord may require at or before the start of a tenancy.
• Registration and inspection. Under Boston's rental ordinance, CBC 9-1.3, rental properties are registered each year by July 1, and units are inspected at least once every five years after Inspectional Services selects the property. Owner-occupied buildings with six or fewer rental units are exempt from inspection. The owner or an authorized adult attends, so after a rekey, confirm that the owner's key set still opens every unit.

Who rekeys, and when

• New owners, since sellers, contractors and past tenants may still hold keys.
• Landlords between tenancies, starting with the shared entry.
• Tenants after a lost key or a roommate's departure, once the owner agrees; the sanitary code makes entry locks the owner's responsibility.

Listing the doors

Name every door the keys open (unit, shared entry, porch, basement or storage), how many copies each household needs, and whether the locks are knobs, deadbolts or mortise locks. Add the neighborhood and cross streets. See lock rekeying, lock replacement for worn-out hardware, or the Boston page.