Most rekeys are booked ahead.
Rekeying is also the quickest answer when a key is lost with something showing your address, when a renter moves out or when a relationship ends. It's usually finished in one visit, and the hardware you already like stays on the doors.
Two Families, One House and a Kitchen Counter Full of Keys
Some rekeys involve a whole household's worth of opinions. What follows is a typical example from a former rental house in Grand Mission.
Two families had just become one. A father with two teenagers and a mother with a teenage daughter had bought a two-story house that had been a rental for eight years. On closing day, the agent handed over a plastic bag of keys: eleven of them, three different kinds, none labeled. The mother's own mother was moving in too, and the father's sister walked their dog during the week. Everyone needed a key. Nobody knew how many strangers already had one.
The mother called us. Our dispatcher asked the practical questions. How many doors? Front, back, garage entry and a side gate with a keyed latch. Any lock that felt rough? The back door, a bit. How many keys did they need? She counted out loud on the phone and landed on eight. Was the house in their names? Yes, closing papers that morning.
The technician arrived in uniform and showed his ID and checked the closing papers against her license. The grandmother wanted to know if the gate would be easier to open, and the father wanted to know whether "rekey" meant "new locks.". It didn't, the technician explained; the locks stayed, the insides changed.
He rekeyed the front deadbolt and handle set, then the garage entry, with his pinning kit. The back door was the problem. It was an off-brand deadbolt with a cylinder that couldn't be rekeyed at all. He showed them, then swapped in a rekeyable Grade 2 deadbolt from the van, keyed to the new key. The gate latch cylinder was stiff with rust; the first try at removing the plug didn't budge. He soaked it in dry lubricant, worked it gently and got it out on the second try, then repinned it to match.
He cut eight keys, and on the youngest teen's request, put a different colored cap on each. Everyone tried their own key in the front door. His experienced advice: after buying a former rental, rekey everything, gate included, before the moving truck is unloaded.
Same Locks, Different Insides
New Pins in Familiar Hardware
A lock opens when the right key lines up its pins. Rekeying swaps the pins for a new set, so old keys stop lining them up and a new key does. Your deadbolt, handle and finish stay exactly as they were.
Builders, Agents and Former Owners
A rekey after moving is the first thing we suggest to anyone in a new home. Builders, previous owners, agents, cleaners and contractors may all have had keys. One visit settles it.
Rekey a Former Rental House
When you rekey a former rental house, expect surprises: mixed brands, off-brand locks that can't be rekeyed and gates nobody has opened in years. We bring compatible cylinders and replacement hardware for the doors that need it.
Non-Rekeyable Lock Cylinders
If one turns up, we replace that lock with a rekeyable one in the same holes, keyed to your new key. You'll see the lock before we swap it.
How Many Keys to Cut
How many keys to cut depends on who needs regular access. Count every adult and teen in the house, any relative who visits often and any trusted helper. Then add one spare that stays in the house. Colored caps help tell them apart.
Seven Days Under Texas Law
Texas law requires landlords to rekey within seven days after a tenant moves out. A landlord rekey between tenants is quick, and we can work with a property manager's approval.
Gates, Mailboxes and Garage Codes
Keyed gate latches can be rekeyed into the same key as the house. Mailboxes usually belong to the postal service or the HOA. And don't forget garage keypads and opener remotes: reset them that day.
Closing Papers or a Landlord's Email
Owners book with ID and a deed or closing papers. Tenants need written landlord permission. Property managers can approve by email.
A Short List on the Fridge
Write down who has a key. Ask for keys back when people move on. And rekey whenever a key can't be accounted for.
Garage Remotes From the Previous Owners
A rekey doesn't touch garage remotes or keypad codes. After moving into a house, clear every remote from the opener's memory and change the keypad code that day. Previous owners and contractors often kept remotes, and they open the garage as easily as a key opens the door.
Service Across Richmond
Service covers all of Richmond, and the dispatcher confirms your address on the call. Rekeys are booked at a time that suits you, often on moving day. Grand Mission, Harvest Green and Aliana are easy to reach outside school times; FM 1093 and the Grand Parkway frontage slow down at rush hour.
Technicians Who Explain Each Door
The technician arrives in uniform with ID, checks your paperwork and works door by door. They inspect each cylinder, explain any lock that has to be replaced, and test every door with every new key before leaving. Before leaving, the technician also walks the family through which key opens what, so the newest teen driver and the visiting grandmother both know exactly which door their key fits.
Fast Locksmith 24/7 is licensed and insured, and Houston homeowners rate us 5 stars on Google.
Rekey Service Around Richmond
Rekey calls in Richmond come from families moving into Grand Mission, Harvest Green, Aliana and Lakemont, former rentals changing hands, landlords between tenants and historic homes passing to the next generation. A rekey service in Richmond often turns up an off-brand lock or two in houses that were rented for years. If you're searching to rekey locks near me before moving in, book the visit for closing day.
Rekeying changes the inside of a lock so old keys stop working. It is especially useful in a newly built house, where crews and contractors may hold keys, and in a house that has changed hands.
Gather the keys you have and list the locks to rekey. We can set several to one key so you carry fewer.
If a lock is worn or damaged, the technician will tell you. Rekeying keeps good hardware and is not the answer for every lock.
Label the new keys with a small tag, and keep a short record of the date and the doors.
Hand out the new keys before the old ones stop working.
Ask whether any lock should be left alone. A rarely used side door can share the new key or stay on its own.
Rekeying does not make a weak door stronger. If the frame is split or the strike held by short screws, we show you and suggest a repair.
Richmond's newer subdivisions see a lot of second and third owners now, and each sale adds keys, remotes and codes to the list of things nobody can account for. A rekey on moving day, plus a fresh garage code and opener memory, gives the new owners a clean start. We can handle the locks while the movers handle the boxes.
We also rekey in Sugar Land, Rosenberg and Fulshear. For new hardware, see lock change, and for keypads that make future changes a code, smart lock installation.
Estimated Technician Arrival Time
Arrival times vary depending on your location and technician availability.
Actual arrival time may vary depending on your exact location, traffic conditions, time of day, current demand, and technician availability.
Providing your exact vehicle location when calling allows us to give you a more accurate estimated arrival time.