Non-destructive entry first, always - and we re-key Schlage, Kwikset, and Baldwin locks on the spot while you watch
You get a price before we start. It does not change when we arrive. No surprises.
Before
AfterFast, Reliable Rekey Locks Across Tamalpais-Homestead Valley
Rekeying a lock in Tamalpais-Homestead Valley means changing the internal pins so your old keys stop working and a new key takes over. It costs between $75 and $180 per cylinder here, with most whole-house jobs landing around $200 to $400 depending on how many locks you have. Call (956) 275-7388 and you’ll get a written price before any tech heads up the hill to your door.
Ridley Locksmith & Security works the hillside streets around Miller Avenue, Almonte Boulevard, and the Homestead Valley side of the ridge on a regular basis. We know these homes. Most of them were built between the 1950s and 1970s, and a lot still carry their original mortise lock bodies at the front door, with Schlage and Kwikset deadbolts added over the years. That mix matters when you’re rekeying. We’ll come out, count the cylinders, verify the keyways, and hand you a written price before any work starts. Not an estimate that moves at the door. The price.
Why Ridley Locksmith & Security Is Tamalpais-Homestead Valley’s Preferred Rekey Locks Company
Every Ridley technician operates under The Garrison Standard, a written code that covers how we quote, how we dress, how we verify identity at the door, and what happens if the work doesn’t hold. We’ve been part of the Garrison Partners family since 2007, and the standard hasn’t softened. The 365-Day Done Right Promise means every rekey carries a written guarantee for one full year. If a cylinder we pinned fails inside that window, we come back at no charge. Automatically. No argument about whether it’s covered.
You’ll know who’s showing up. Our techs are background-checked and uniformed, not subcontractors pulled from a call board. When someone knocks on a door in Tamalpais-Homestead Valley with a Ridley shirt and a written quote, that person works for us. Tamalpais-Homestead Valley residents have dealt with no-shows and price shifts before. We built our process around not being that shop. The quote you get on the phone is the price on the invoice. Period.
Our team handles the specific hardware mix common along Almonte Boulevard, Montford Avenue, and Cascade Drive: Schlage and Kwikset deadbolts on the newer installs, older mortise bodies in the original doors, and the occasional high-security upgrade to Medeco or Yale cylinders for owners who want key control. We stock common pin kits and keyways for these brands on the truck, which means most rekeys in Tamalpais-Homestead Valley are done in one visit, same day.
Rekey Deadbolt in Tamalpais-Homestead Valley
Rekey Deadbolt work in Tamalpais-Homestead Valley usually means pulling the cylinder from an existing Schlage, Kwikset, or Yale deadbolt, replacing the pins and springs inside, and cutting a new key that matches the rest of the house. A new homeowner on a street like Fern Canyon Road or Vasco Drive wants this done before moving anything inside. The previous owners might be fine people, but you don’t know who else held a spare. Rekeying a deadbolt here typically runs $75 to $140 per cylinder, and it takes about 20 minutes per door once we’re on site.
When to Rekey Instead of Replace
If the deadbolt turns smoothly and the finish isn’t rusted or failing, rekeying is the right call. A new lock doesn’t buy you anything except hardware you didn’t need to pay for. We rekey the cylinder, keep the existing housing, and hand you new keys that work. The old keys go dead. That’s the entire job. If the deadbolt is slipping, loose in the bore, or the bolt doesn’t throw fully, we’ll tell you before doing any work and quote a replacement only if it’s actually necessary.
Bump Resistance Check
While the cylinder is out, we inspect the pins and springs for wear. Many deadbolts on the older hillside homes in Tamalpais-Homestead Valley came with standard pinned cylinders that a bump key can defeat. If we see that risk during a rekey, we’ll tell you and offer bump-resistant pins as part of the job. It’s a small addition that changes how the cylinder responds to key-bumping attempts, and it costs less than replacing the whole lock.
Rekey House in Tamalpais-Homestead Valley
Rekey House service in Tamalpais-Homestead Valley is the full-property reset: every exterior door, the garage entry, and any gate or shed that shares a keyway. We come out, make a door-by-door list, verify which locks can share one key and which can’t, and give you a single written price for the whole job before touching a cylinder. On a typical three-bedroom hillside house off Evergreen Avenue or Melrose Avenue, that’s $200 to $400, finished in about an hour and a half to two hours.
One Key for Every Door
Most owners want one key that opens everything. We can do that as long as the keyways match. If your front door still runs an original mortise cylinder and the back door has a Schlage deadbolt, we may not be able to key them alike without changing hardware. We’ll explain exactly which locks can share a key and which need their own, before you agree to anything.
Rekeying Original Mortise Locks
Tamalpais-Homestead Valley’s 1950s and 60s tract homes often have original mortise lock bodies that don’t accept modern drop-in cylinders without a shim kit or a different cylinder style. This is the most common local complication we see. The fix is straightforward for a tech who knows the hardware, but an inexperienced hand can damage the lock body or quote you a new lock you don’t need. We keep the existing mortise hardware and swap the cylinder only when that’s the right call.
Trusted Brands We Service in Tamalpais-Homestead Valley
We work on Schlage, Kwikset, Yale, and Baldwin hardware every week, and we carry pin kits and replacement cylinders for all of them on the truck. That means a rekey on a Kwikset deadbolt off Vasco Drive or a Schlage deadbolt near Miller Avenue doesn’t wait on a parts order. We also handle high-security keyways from Medeco and Mul-T-Lock for owners who want restricted key duplication. If you’re unsure what brand is on your door, we’ll identify it during the quote. The written price covers the actual lock, not a guess.
Common Rekey Locks Problems We See in Tamalpais-Homestead Valley Homes
- Original mortise cylinders that won’t accept modern pins. Many 1950s and 60s front doors on hillside lots still run their original mortise lock bodies, and the cylinders inside them often use different pin depths than modern Schlage or Kwikset hardware. We carry shim kits and replacement cylinders that fit these bodies without forcing anything or drilling out hardware.
- Mismatched hardware across doors. A house might have a Schlage deadbolt on the front, a Kwikset knob on the garage entry, and an unbranded cylinder on the side gate. We quote the rekey per cylinder, not per door, so you know exactly what you’re paying before work begins.
- Old spare keys still floating around. After a sale or a roommate change, it’s common for one old key to still open the side gate or a basement door. During a whole-house rekey we test every cylinder we touch, and we confirm the old keys don’t turn before we pack up.
- Drilling that should have been picking. A jammed deadbolt on a stuck door doesn’t usually need a drill. We try non-destructive entry first, using picks or bump techniques where it’s safe and legal. You pay for the rekey, not a new door prep and patch job.
One job this spring up on Almonte Boulevard is a good example. A 1960s split-level had every exterior door keyed differently plus an old seller key still working the side gate. We rekeyed the Schlage deadbolts and the Kwikset knob cylinders to a single new key, verified the pins were bump-resistant, and confirmed the old keys no longer turned before we left. The original mortise lock at the front door only needed a cylinder replacement. The existing hardware stayed. That’s the whole point of rekeying: new key, same working hardware, full security.
Pricing for Rekey Locks in Tamalpais-Homestead Valley, CA
A single cylinder rekey in Tamalpais-Homestead Valley typically runs $75 to $140. A whole-house rekey, covering three to five exterior openings, lands between $200 and $400. If you have original mortise cylinders in the mix, those run at the higher end because they often need a shim kit or a different cylinder profile. High-security keyways, like Medeco or Mul-T-Lock, add the cost of the restricted key blanks and cylinder work.
We quote the full price on the phone before anyone is dispatched. The tech who arrives verifies the locks against that quote at the door, and if the hardware differs from what was described, we show you a revised written price before doing any work. There is no call-out surcharge added on arrival. You’ll know the number, and that number is on the invoice.
We Also Serve Cities Near Tamalpais-Homestead Valley
Our Rekey Locks team covers the full Bay Area corridor. If you have a rental in San Francisco, a business in San Jose, or family in Los Angeles or San Diego, we can coordinate. The same written price before work starts and the same one-year guarantee apply.
Serving Tamalpais-Homestead Valley, CA - Our Local Coverage Area
We’re based in the Tamalpais-Homestead Valley area and know this community well. Use the map below to see our service coverage - if you’re nearby, we can almost certainly help.
FAQs About Rekey Locks in Tamalpais-Homestead Valley
Yes. We give a written price for the specific cylinders described to us when you call (956) 275-7388. If the tech finds something different at the door, like an original mortise cylinder that needs a shim kit, we show you the revised written price before any work begins. You’re never billed for a door you didn’t approve.
In most cases we can rekey the existing mortise cylinder without replacing the lock. Tamalpais-Homestead Valley’s mid-century homes often have mortise bodies that take a different cylinder profile, and we carry the shim kits and replacement cylinders to do that work. If the body itself is broken or the bolt is failing, we’ll tell you honestly and quote a replacement only then.
A three-to-five-door rekey in Tamalpais-Homestead Valley usually takes an hour and a half to two hours once the tech is on site. Homes on streets like Cascade Drive or Fern Canyon Road with original mortise hardware can run longer, and we’ll tell you that when you call. Same-day service is standard, and we’ll give you an arrival window before you hang up.
Every Ridley tech is background-checked and uniformed, and every tech carries company ID. Before they touch a lock, they’ll verify the written quote with you. If someone shows up without a uniform, without ID, or starts work without confirming the price, that’s not us. Call (956) 275-7388 and we’ll confirm who was dispatched to your address.
No. That’s a failed rekey, and it’s exactly the scenario our 365-Day Done Right Promise covers. If any cylinder we pinned still turns with an old key inside one full year, we come back and make it right at no charge. Call us and we’ll schedule the return visit. The guarantee is in writing, not a verbal promise.
Get Your Rekey Scheduled in Tamalpais-Homestead Valley
If you’ve just closed on a house off Miller Avenue, changed roommates in Homestead Valley, or lost a set of keys somewhere between your door and the trailhead, call (956) 275-7388. We’ll give you a free, written estimate over the phone, confirm the lock details, and dispatch a background-checked Ridley tech who’ll verify everything at the door before doing any work. The price you approve is the price you pay. The work carries a written one-year guarantee. That’s The Garrison Standard, and it’s how we do every rekey in Tamalpais-Homestead Valley.
Written by Drew Kowalski, Owner at Ridley Locksmith & Security, serving Tamalpais-Homestead Valley under The Garrison Standard since 2007.