Changing Locks in Newmarket: Should You, and What Happens Next
Two questions get asked on almost every call: do I actually need this, and how long will you be in my house? This page answers both, door by door.
Quick answer
Changing locks in Newmarket usually means one of two jobs: rekeying the existing cylinders so old keys stop working, or replacing the hardware entirely. Rekeying is right when the locks are sound, replacement when they are worn or inadequate. A typical Newmarket house has four to six exterior cylinders and is finished in one same-day visit of one to three hours.
Most people who search for changing locks are somewhere between two states: something has happened, and they have not yet decided how seriously to take it. The honest answer from someone who does this every day is that the decision is usually easier than it feels, because the cost of doing it is low and the cost of wondering is not.
What follows is the decision first — whether you need it at all, and whether it means a rekey or new hardware — and then the practical part: what a technician actually does between knocking on your door and handing you keys.
If you already know which way you are going, the detail lives elsewhere. The mechanics and per-cylinder pricing are on the lock rekey page. Grades, brands and finishes are on the lock replacement page. The events that trigger the whole thing are covered under when rekeying is called for.
Do you actually need to change your locks?
Work down this list. If any line applies, the answer is yes and it is not a close call.
If none of those apply and your locks work smoothly, you probably do not need anything today. That is a legitimate answer and we would rather tell you than sell you something. The one soft case worth acting on is time: if you have owned the house for eight or ten years and keys have quietly accumulated, a reset is cheap peace of mind.
- You have just taken possession of a house or condo and did not personally supervise every key ever cut for it
- A tenant has moved out, or is about to
- A relationship has ended and the other person had a key
- Keys were lost with anything that identifies your address, or were stolen
- A contractor, cleaner, sitter or agent had keys during a job that has now finished
- There was a break-in, whether or not a key was involved
- You genuinely cannot say how many copies exist or who holds them
The other soft case is capability rather than trust. If your exterior doors carry Grade 3 hardware, or a knob with no deadbolt, the problem is not who holds a key — it is that the door can be opened without one. That is a hardware conversation, not a key conversation.
Rekey or replace: how the decision is made
On site, the technician is answering one question: is the existing cylinder mechanically sound? If yes, rekey it. If no, replace it. Everything else is preference and budget.
| What we find | What we recommend | Rough cost per door |
|---|---|---|
| Lock turns smoothly, no play, no corrosion | Rekey — same hardware, new key | $25 – $45 |
| Key turns when half inserted, or wrong keys turn it | Replace — the plug is worn out | $140 – $260 |
| Bolt sticks or needs force, especially in cold | Replace, and check the door alignment too | $140 – $260 |
| Green or white corrosion at the cylinder face | Replace — corrosion has reached the pin chambers | $140 – $260 |
| Knob only, no deadbolt on an exterior door | Add a deadbolt, then key it to match | $180 – $320 |
| Grade 3 hardware on a main entrance | Upgrade to Grade 2 or better | $140 – $260 |
| Drilled, punched or kicked-in damage | Replace, and repair the frame and strike | Quoted after inspection |
A mixed answer across a house is completely normal and often the cheapest outcome. Rekey the three good cylinders, replace the one seized side door, add a deadbolt to the garage entry, and key the lot to a single key. We do that combination most weeks. If you want the two options set side by side before you call, we have a dedicated rekey or replace comparison.
Costs shown are per door and exclude the $49 to $89 service call, which is charged once per visit regardless of how many doors are done. Overnight, weekend and statutory holiday attendance carries a premium. A firm total is confirmed on the phone before dispatch.
How many doors a Newmarket house really has
People book “the front door” and then discover the job is bigger. Counting properly on the phone saves a second visit and gets you a real price rather than a guess.
A typical detached house in one of the 1990s or 2000s subdivisions — Glenway Estates, Woodland Hill, Summerhill Estates, Copper Hills — has four to six keyed cylinders once you count everything.
Front entry: usually two
A deadbolt plus a keyed handleset or knob. Both need doing, and both should end up on the same key.
Garage entry door
The pedestrian door from the garage into the house. The single most commonly forgotten cylinder, and the one an intruder inside a garage works on unseen.
Side or back entry
Often a mudroom or basement walk-out. Frequently the oldest and worst hardware on the property.
Sheds, gates and mailboxes
Not urgent, but cheap to include while the technician is already there and the service call is paid.
Townhouses and condos near Yonge and Davis are usually simpler — one or two cylinders, and shared entrances that belong to the corporation and cannot be touched by us. Older Main Street South century homes often surprise people in the other direction, with mortise locks that need a different approach entirely.
What actually happens on the visit
The phone call, five minutes
We ask how many doors, what brands are on them, and what happened. From that we give a firm all-in price and an arrival window. Nothing changes on arrival unless we find something you did not know about, and then we tell you before doing anything.
Arrival and walk-round, ten minutes
The technician walks every exterior door with you, tests each lock, and says which ones will be rekeyed and which need replacing. If a lock is fine, you are told it is fine.
The work, one to three hours
Cylinders come off, get re-pinned or replaced, and go back on. Keys are cut on the van as we go. Strikes get adjusted, loose screws get driven home, and misaligned latches get corrected while the hardware is off.
Testing and handover
Every lock is tested with the door open and closed, from inside and outside, with each key. You get the keys, the packaging and the warranty, and the technician runs through anything you should watch.
Same-day is the norm rather than a promise we stretch to keep. Typical response to a Newmarket address is 20 to 30 minutes, and we work 24 hours a day, seven days a week, including statutory holidays. Evening and weekend appointments are ordinary bookings for us, not emergencies.
A whole-house change, end to end
Here is a job we did in a Newmarket subdivision recently, with names and details left out. It is a fair picture of what a full change looks like.
Five cylinders: front deadbolt, front handleset, garage entry knob, basement walk-out deadbolt, and a keyed gate lock. Three were Weiser and sound, so they were rekeyed. The garage entry knob was a Grade 3 with a plug so worn a neighbour’s key turned it, so it was replaced with a Grade 2 lever. The walk-out deadbolt had a strike held by three-quarter-inch screws into the casing only, which was corrected with a box strike and three-inch screws into the framing.
All five were keyed alike to one key, four copies cut. Total time on site: two hours and ten minutes. One service call, three rekeys, one replacement, one strike upgrade.
- One service call regardless of door count — doing everything in one visit is always cheaper
- Mixed rekey and replace across a house is normal and keeps the bill down
- Strike plate and screw upgrades cost almost nothing and matter more than most people realise
- Keying alike is included, not an extra
- Ask for a separate key on a shed or gate if you want to hand that one out safely
If the change follows a break-in, the frame and jamb usually need attention before any lock will hold. That is burglary damage repair, and we handle it on the same visit.
What you can expect from us
Same-day lock changes across the region
Newmarket is where the van is based, so anything off Yonge Street, Davis Drive, Mulock Drive, Leslie Street, Bayview Parkway or Green Lane is usually a short run. Closing-day whole-house changes are the most common booking we take.
We reach the surrounding towns by driving out from Newmarket — there is no separate shop in any of them — so we will always give a realistic arrival window rather than an optimistic one.
Frequently asked questions
How long does changing all the locks in a house take?
One to three hours for a typical Newmarket house of four to six cylinders, including cutting and testing keys. A single door is 15 to 20 minutes for a replacement or 5 to 10 minutes for a rekey. Most of the variation comes from whether any doors need new hardware bored in rather than swapped.
Can you change my locks today?
Almost always. We run 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, and typical arrival to a Newmarket address is 20 to 30 minutes. Evenings, weekends and statutory holidays are normal working hours for us, though after-hours attendance carries a premium on the service call.
Is it cheaper to rekey or to replace?
Rekeying, by a wide margin — $25 to $45 per cylinder against $140 to $260 for a supplied and installed deadbolt. A whole house rekeyed is $180 to $300; the same house with all-new hardware is $700 to $1,400. Replace only when the cylinder is genuinely past saving or the hardware is inadequate for the door.
Do I need to be home while you change the locks?
Someone with authority over the property does. The technician needs access to every door and has to hand over the new keys in person — we will not leave keys in a mailbox or under a mat. For vacant rental units, a property manager or agent meeting us on site is the usual arrangement.
What if some locks are fine and others are not?
That is the most common outcome and it is the cheapest one. We rekey the sound cylinders, replace only what needs replacing, and key everything to a single key so you still walk away with one key. You pay one service call for the whole visit either way.
Do you change locks on condos and apartments?
We change the lock on your own unit door, and any interior or storage lock you own. Shared entrances, lobbies, garage doors and mail rooms belong to the condominium corporation or the building owner, so those have to go through property management rather than through you.
Will changing the locks damage my door?
Not when it is a like-for-like swap into existing holes. Where a new deadbolt has to be bored into a door that has none, the holes are cut with a jig so the cross bore and edge bore line up, and the faceplate and strike are mortised flush. Freehand drilling is what ruins doors, and it is why this is worth paying someone to do.
Should I change the garage door opener code as well?
Yes, and it costs nothing. The overhead door is a remote and keypad system rather than a cylinder, so you reset the code at the motor unit — usually a learn button and a fresh code. The technician will point out the button while on site if you ask. The pedestrian door from the garage into the house does need a real lock change.
Related locksmith services in Newmarket
Tell us the doors, we will tell you the price
Count your exterior cylinders — front, side, back, garage entry — and call. Firm quote on the phone, most jobs done the same day. 866-820-1331, 24 hours.
