Do landlords have to change or rekey the locks between tenants?
It depends on the state. Texas is clear: under Property Code 92.156 the landlord must rekey keyed security devices at the landlord's expense within seven days after each tenant turnover date. Many other states say less, but the same duty of care applies in practice: a lock that old tenants, old vendors and old guests can still open is a risk you own. Rekeying costs far less than the claim you would face if something happened. This is general information, not legal advice.
What Texas requires
Texas Property Code 92.156 says a security device operated by a key, card or combination must be rekeyed by the landlord at the landlord's expense, not later than the seventh day after each tenant turnover date. The landlord pays, not the outgoing or incoming tenant, with one narrow exception: if a tenant leaves in breach of a written lease, the landlord may deduct the reasonable rekeying cost from the deposit, but only if the lease has a provision underlined or in boldface authorizing it.
This post cites Texas because it is the clearest statute we opened. Other states have their own rules on locks and deadbolts, and cities add their own. Check yours.
What about states without a lock rule?
Many states do not name a rekey deadline. That does not make rekeying optional in practice. A landlord is generally expected to keep a rental reasonably secure, and a former tenant who still has a key is the first suspect and the first lawsuit after a break in. Your insurer may also ask what you did.
- Rekeying leaves a record: invoice date, unit, who did it.
- It is cheap compared with a lock replacement and much cheaper than a claim.
- It protects the new tenant from the old tenant's copies, the old vendor's copies and the old building manager's copies.
A routine that works on every turn
- Collect every key, fob and code from the leaving tenant at move out and write down how many came back.
- Schedule the rekey as part of the make-ready, before the new tenant's move in day, ideally after the last vendor visit.
- Rekey the entry, any side door, and the mailbox or storage lock if they came with the unit.
- Give the new tenant the number of keys you cut and write it in the move-in checklist.
- Change smart lock codes and remove the old tenant's code, and any vendor codes that are no longer needed.
- Keep the rekey invoice with the unit's records.
Example a made-up owner pays $85 to rekey a unit between tenants. If the unit turns twice a year, that is $170 a year. A single break in claim with a deductible would cost many times more, and the invoice shows the lock was changed on a date you can prove.
Where it fits in the turn
Rekey after contractors are done, because they may have used a lockbox or been given a key. Rekey before the final clean if the cleaner will lock up after, so the cleaner gets a key that works. A turn order of trades makes the day easy to place.
How DoorKeeping handles it
Put the rekey on the unit's turn as a work order and send it to your locksmith by link, so they see the address and the job with no sign in. When the invoice comes, DoorKeeping reads it and codes it as a repair expense on the right property, and nothing is paid until you approve it. Ask Claude or ChatGPT to list every unit that has turned since its last rekey.
Sources
Questions
- Who pays to rekey, the landlord or the tenant?
- In Texas the landlord pays, with a narrow exception when a tenant leaves in breach of a written lease that has an underlined or bold clause allowing the deduction. Check your state's rule elsewhere.
- How fast do I have to rekey in Texas?
- Not later than the seventh day after each tenant turnover date under Property Code 92.156.
- Do smart locks count?
- A security device operated by a card or combination counts in the Texas text. Change the codes when a tenant leaves and remove any you no longer need.