House Lockout in Richmond, VA

Which door stands between you and your keys

Richmond's housing stock puts different doors in the way. In the Fan District, many houses built between the Civil War and about 1920 were split into apartments during the Great Depression. A locked-out tenant there may face two locks: the shared street door and the unit door behind it.

Scott's Addition, rezoned for industry in 1927, now also has apartment complexes such as Osprey Lofts and The Summit. Their lobby and garage doors may open with fobs that management issues, separate from the keyed lock on your own unit. A lost building fob goes to management; the keyed lock on your own unit is a locksmith job.

South of the James, most Westover Hills houses date from 1920 to 1940, a mix of Cape Cods and Spanish Colonial and Tudor Revival homes. A detached house may have a back or side door on a different lock than the front, so list every exterior door.

Proof that you live there

Have photo ID showing the home's address ready. If yours shows an old address, add a lease, deed or utility bill in your name. Census Bureau estimates for 2024 show 57.7 percent of Richmond's occupied homes are rented, so a renter should also call the landlord, who may hold a spare key.

If your landlord shut you out without a court order, that is a legal question rather than a lock job. Va. Code § 55.1-1243.1 gives a tenant excluded that way a petition to the general district court, and the initial hearing is held within five calendar days of filing. This is general information, not legal advice.

Waiting outside in the cold

Richmond's normal January low is 28.8°F, so a winter lockout after dark can mean standing below freezing. Wait with a neighbor or in a nearby shop. If someone inside cannot get out and is in danger, call 911 before anything else.

With a house lockout request, name the address or cross streets and the locked door, and say where the keys are. In a Fan house or a Scott's Addition complex, add the building and unit, and whether the shared door or only your own is the problem. If the keys are gone for good, lock rekeying makes them useless once you are back in.