Changing Locks After Moving — Owner Or Tenant?
If you own the property, rekey every exterior cylinder and you are done. If you rent, check your lease and speak to the landlord first — in most Louisiana tenancies the tenant does not have the right to change locks unilaterally, and doing it anyway can put your deposit and your tenancy at risk.
Two very different situations get asked as the same question, so the answers get mixed up online. Owning and renting are not the same problem.
If you own the place
Straightforward. Rekey the exterior cylinders, ask for them keyed alike, and include the door from the garage into the house.
There is a full walkthrough in should I rekey after buying a house in Kenner and a priority list in the new homeowner checklist. The short version: rekeying kills every old key, keeps your hardware, and takes 15 to 25 minutes a cylinder.
If you rent, read the lease first
This is where people get themselves into trouble, usually with good intentions.
Most residential leases in Louisiana say something about alterations, and a lock change is normally treated as one. Common clauses require written permission from the landlord, or require that the landlord be given a working key immediately, or forbid it outright.
Changing the locks without checking can mean a deposit deduction, a lease violation notice, or being billed for a locksmith to put it back. None of which is worth it when a conversation usually solves it.
How to ask, so the answer is yes
Landlords say no when the request sounds like a problem. It sounds like a problem when it means losing access to their own property.
Ask in writing, and offer the two things that remove the objection:
- You will use a professional rather than doing it yourself
- You will give them a working key the same day
That is a rekey, and most landlords will agree to it because it costs them nothing and their access is unaffected. Some will arrange it themselves, which is better still.
When a tenant has a stronger case
If there is a safety element — a former partner with a key, a break-in, a housemate who left badly — say so plainly. That changes the conversation from preference to safety and most landlords respond differently.
Domestic violence situations in particular have specific protections in many states, and it is worth getting proper advice rather than relying on a locksmith page. We are not lawyers and this is not legal advice.
What if the landlord says no?
You still have options that are not lock changes:
- A portable door lock or travel latch, which fits and removes without altering anything
- A door reinforcement bar for while you are inside
- A camera or doorbell that is not screwed into anything
- Asking the landlord for a rekey rather than a change — a smaller ask
None of these are lease alterations, so none of them need permission.
Owner or tenant, at a glance
| You own it | You rent it | |
|---|---|---|
| Can change locks | Yes | Check the lease first |
| Usual right answer | Rekey, keyed alike | Ask landlord for a rekey |
| Give a key to anyone? | No | Yes, to the landlord, same day |
| If refused | n/a | Portable lock, door bar, camera |
| Who pays | You | Negotiate — often the landlord |
The bit everyone forgets in a move
Whatever your situation, get the key situation sorted in the first week. Moves are chaotic, keys get handed to removal firms and cleaners and the person who came to read the meter, and the list of who has one grows fast while nobody is tracking it.
And if you are the one leaving a rental, do not cut yourself a spare “just in case”. It is the sort of thing that seems harmless and looks very different later.
Booking it
Tell us whether you own or rent, how many exterior doors, and whether you want everything on one key. If you rent, get the landlord’s go-ahead first — we will ask. Ranges are on the prices page, and the service detail is on rekey locks in Kenner.