As a rental property owner in Deer Park, you know that your residents frequently have great concerns regarding their personal safety. When new residents move into a rental home, they might pose questions about changing the locks so that former residents or other people holding keys to the property won’t be able to go into the residence anymore. In certain areas, local laws do not require a landlord to change the locks between residents, and this might be seen as an unnecessary expense by some property owners.
If the resident asks, do you need to change or re-key the locks?
The plain answer is no, you are probably not required to change the locks if asked. Nevertheless, you have to think about the potential consequences of not doing so.
As the property owner, you are responsible for giving your Deer Park residents the means to secure the home. After your residents have signed the lease, you supply them with keys, garage door openers, or passcodes for them to access the property as well as give them the means to secure the property. Residents tend to provide several copies of their keys for family members or even neighbors, and they are not always careful to gather and properly get rid of these copies when they move out of a rental home.
If you don’t change or re-key the locks, and someone is able to enter the residence illegally, you can be hit a lawsuit and held liable for damages. Particularly in situations of domestic abuse, divorce, or family problems, or even if they are worried about an old roommate, changing the locks between residents is a crucial step in protecting yourself from legal liability.
Of course, the locks are only one component of a rental home’s system. Garage door openers, keypads, and other access devices could also be possible risks. Residents may give entry codes to repairmen, babysitters, or others who have to enter the home when they aren’t there. Careful management of passcodes, remote controls, and so on needs to be part of your property management strategy, including changing codes or replacing remote controls if necessary to help guarantee your residents’ safety.
At Real Property Management Prestige, we want to ensure that the only people who could enter your rental properties are your residents. That is why we consider lock changes between residents as an important part of our property management services. Our approach is intended to protect you and your properties with the best practices in the industry. Contact us online or call us at 281-532-5455 today to find out more.
We are pledged to the letter and spirit of U.S. policy for the achievement of equal housing opportunity throughout the Nation. See Equal Housing Opportunity Statement for more information.
