Smart Lock Installation in Detroit, MI

Will a smart lock fit a Detroit door?

Census Bureau estimates for 2024 put 78.3 percent of Detroit's homes in buildings from before 1960. Most smart deadbolts are made for a standard bored door, and an older door may instead have a mortise lock, a backset the new lock does not cover, or several old holes. In a neighborhood like Palmer Woods, built up mostly from 1917 to 1929, check the front door before buying a lock.

A motorized bolt pushing against a binding strike drains its batteries, so the deadbolt should throw fully without anyone pushing or lifting the door. If it doesn't, the strike or hinges need lock repair first.

In rentals and two-family houses

With about half the city's occupied homes rented (49.0 percent), many smart locks go on a door the occupant does not own, so a tenant should have the landlord's agreement in writing before installing anything. For owners, MCL 600.2918(2)(c) lists changing, altering or adding to the locks or other security devices without immediately giving the person in possession keys or other unlocking devices as unlawful interference with possession. An owner fitting a smart lock to an occupied unit should hand over working keys and codes at the same time, and in a two-family house each unit needs its own code. This is general information, not legal advice.

Cold, batteries and keypads

NOAA puts Michigan's long-term statewide average at 13 nights a year at 0°F or below, though the count has run below average since 1990. Battery capacity drops in the cold, and an outdoor keypad takes the full temperature. Change batteries before winter instead of waiting for the low-battery warning.

A battery-powered lock keeps working in a power outage, but a powered garage door may not. Keep the mechanical key on your ring, not inside the house, and use the keyed cylinder now and then so it keeps turning smoothly.

Details to gather first

• photos of the door from both sides and of its edge
• the current lock and, if already bought, the smart lock model
• whether the home is rented or part of a two-family house
• the block and its cross streets

The service itself is described on smart lock installation. The Detroit page covers the housing stock behind these notes.