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.
Fast, Reliable Lock Installation & Rekey Across Cicero
Lock installation and rekey in Cicero typically costs $95-$240 for a standard rekey (per cylinder) and $180-$450 for new deadbolt or smart lock installation. Most jobs are completed same-day, and we quote the full price on the phone before anyone is dispatched. If you live in Cicero and your lock is original to a pre-war two-flat or bungalow, you’re not dealing with a simple swap, and you need someone who knows the difference. Call (331) 310-8471 and a live person answers, 24/7.
Cicero’s housing stock is not like Schaumburg’s. Most homes here were built between 1910 and 1940, and a huge share still carry their original mortise locks with skeleton-key cylinders. That changes everything about how we approach Lock Installation & Rekey in this town. You cannot walk into a big-box store and buy a drop-in replacement for a 1920s mortise body. We stock and source those parts specifically because Cicero demands it.
Key Takeaways:
- Rekeying an existing lock in Cicero runs $95-$240 per cylinder, quoted in writing before work starts.
- Most of Cicero’s original mortise locks can be rekeyed or converted without replacing the door or the lockset.
- We respond to Cicero calls from our metro dispatch office, with technicians arriving typically within 45-75 minutes for non-emergency jobs.
- Every visit includes a written scope, a documented photo record, and a 365-Day Done Right Promise.
Why Novak Lock & Security Is Cicero’s Preferred Lock Installation & Rekey Company
We have worked on buildings along Cermak Road, on the residential blocks off 16th Street, and throughout the dense grid of two-flats and three-flats that define Cicero. That matters because the job is rarely just “put in a new deadbolt.” It’s often: identify a 90-year-old mortise lock, determine whether the cylinder is rekeyable, source a replacement body if it’s not, and do the work without chewing up the original wood door. A technician who only knows modern bored locks will misdiagnose half of what they see in Cicero.
Daniel Novak has built this company since 2002 on a single rule: the price quoted on the phone is the price on the invoice. Haven Standard Clause 1. No technician is allowed to change that number at the door. That rule matters more in locksmithing than almost any other trade, because the industry is full of operators who quote low to get a truck out and then inflate the bill on-site. We don’t. And we’ve done more than 60,000 lock, key, and system installations or services since 2002, every one with a written price before work began and a documented record when we left.
When you call (331) 310-8471, a person answers. No voicemail queue, no call center script, no automated attendant. If you’re locked out of your Cicero bungalow at 2 a.m. in January, you talk to a human who can dispatch a background-checked, uniformed technician to your street. We also leave you a photo record of the work, not as an upgrade, but as standard procedure. That’s The Haven Standard applied to every one of our jobs.
Our Lock Installation & Rekey Services in Cicero
Smart Lock Installation on Cicero Two-Flats and Bungalows
Most smart locks are designed for doors bored to modern ANSI specs. Many Cicero doors are not. If your door carries an original mortise lock, we retrofit rather than force a square peg through a round hole. A smart lock installation on a standard modern door in Cicero runs $220-$450 depending on the hardware you choose. On a mortise door, expect $350-$600 for a proper conversion that preserves the original door. We will tell you honestly whether your door is a candidate before we ever touch a drill.
Keyless Entry for Cicero Rentals and Multi-Units
Investor-owned two-flats and three-flats dominate large sections of Cicero, and tenant turnover is constant. Keyless entry systems make sense for property owners who are tired of rekeying after every move-out. We install keypad deadbolts and electronic entry systems starting at $240-$400 per door, with master code options for landlord access. For a three-flat off 16th Street, we can set up a system where each tenant has a unique code and you have one master code that survives every turnover.
Keypad Lock Installation
A good keypad deadbolt is the right answer for a lot of Cicero homeowners who want to stop fishing for keys on a cold porch. Installation runs $190-$350 for a standard keypad deadbolt on a properly prepped door. We carry Schlage and Baldwin keypad models, and we can pair them with existing hardware or replace the entire front entry set. If your strike plate is worn or your frame has shifted, we fix that first. A $300 lock does nothing if the bolt doesn’t seat.
Biometric Lock Installation
Biometric locks, fingerprint readers and the like, cost more and are not the right fit for every Cicero home. A fingerprint deadbolt installation here runs $350-$650. These locks depend on clean, dry conditions at the reader, and they’re best suited for covered entries. On a south-facing bungalow door that gets full sun and rain off a porch overhang, we may steer you toward a high-quality keypad instead. If you insist on biometric, we install it correctly and we’re honest about the maintenance expectations. We’d rather sell you the right lock than the expensive one.
Key Duplication for Obsolete Cicero Cylinders
We duplicate keys on-site for standard Kwikset and Schlage cylinders, and we cut high-security keys for Medeco, Mul-T-Lock, and Abloy systems. But the skill that matters in Cicero is duplicating keys for obsolete mortise cylinders, the kind that hardware stores have never carried. A skeleton-key mortise lock can often be converted to a modern pin-and-tumbler cylinder, and once converted, we can cut as many copies as you need. Standard key duplication runs $3-$12 per key. High-security key duplication starts at $15-$35 per key, with proof of ownership required.
What happens when you call
- 1
A real person answersNo phone trees - you reach a local pro.
- 2
You get an upfront price rangeHonest numbers before anyone is dispatched.
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A background-checked tech heads outLicensed & insured, dispatched right away.
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You approve before work beginsNothing starts until you say go.
Trusted Brands We Service in Cicero
We are factory-authorized for Medeco, Mul-T-Lock, Abloy, Baldwin, and Schlage, which means we can order and install high-security cylinders and restricted keyways that a general handyman cannot legally access. For Cicero specifically, we stock rebuild kits and replacement cylinders for vintage mortise locks, including Sargent and other early-20th-century brands that show up repeatedly in this housing market. If you have a Baldwin mortise lock on a 1920s two-flat and you want to keep the original trim, we can rekey it, rebuild it, or convert it to modern key control without swapping in a generic replacement.
We believe in showing you the parts before we install them. If a mortise body is beyond repair, we will show you the stripped threads or the crack in the casing, not just tell you it’s bad. Then we’ll give you a written price for the replacement before we proceed.
Common Lock Installation & Rekey Problems We See in Cicero Homes
- Original mortise locks with skeleton-key cylinders. These are wonderfully built and unbelievably outdated from a key-control standpoint. Anyone with a skeleton key blank can potentially operate thousands of these locks. We convert them to modern pin-and-tumbler cylinders so only your key works.
- Deadbolts installed into hollow-core replacement doors. On a lot of Cicero renovations, someone hung a cheap hollow-core door and bored a deadbolt hole into it without a reinforcing edge plate. Under forced entry, the bolt tears straight through the thin wood. We reinforce the edge bore with a heavy-duty strike plate and proper through-bolts before installing any new hardware on these doors.
- Seasonal frame movement causing winter lock failures. Cicero’s freeze-thaw cycles swell the century-old wood frames in two-flats and bungalows. A deadbolt that latched cleanly in October suddenly won’t extend in January. Nine times out of ten, the lock isn’t broken. The frame moved. We shim and adjust the strike plate rather than selling you a new lock you don’t need.
- Rekeyed mortise cylinders that seize when the frame swells. If someone rekeyed your mortise cylinder with standard pins and filed the springs down, the first freeze can bind the cylinder so badly you can’t get your key in. We rekey mortise cylinders with the correct pin tolerances for a moving frame, which is not a detail the average locksmith accounts for.
Pricing for Lock Installation & Rekey in Cicero, IL
Here’s what you can expect to pay in Cicero. Standard rekey on a modern cylinder: $95-$180 per cylinder, including new pins and two keys. Rekey on a mortise cylinder: $120-$240 per cylinder. New deadbolt installation on a properly prepped solid door: $180-$300. New deadbolt installation on a hollow-core or mortise door requiring reinforcement or conversion: $250-$450. Smart lock installation: $220-$450 on a standard door, $350-$600 on a mortise door. These are the real numbers we quote before dispatch, and they include labor, hardware where noted, and our photo record. There is no call-out surcharge added on arrival. The price you’re quoted is the price on the invoice. Period.
Every estimate is free. Call (331) 310-8471 and we’ll give you a firm number before anyone gets in a van.
We Also Serve Cities Near Cicero
Our Lock Installation & Rekey in Cicero crew regularly works the surrounding metro. If you’re in Chicago, Evanston, Naperville, or Schaumburg, we provide the same written-price-before-work rule, the same photo record, and the same live-answer phone line. Schaumburg and Naperville jobs tend to focus on newer construction and smart-home integration. Cicero is where the old locks live, and we’re equally equipped for both.
Serving Cicero, IL - Our Local Coverage Area
We’re based in the Cicero 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 - Lock Installation & Rekey in Cicero
In most cases, yes, the original mortise lock can be rekeyed or converted without replacing the entire lockset. The cylinder inside the mortise body is a separate component. We remove it, rekey it to new pins, or replace it with a modern cylinder if you want better key control. A full mortise body replacement is only necessary if the internal springs, levers, or casing are physically broken or worn beyond function. We’ll show you the condition before recommending replacement. The typical cost to rekey an original mortise cylinder in Cicero is $120-$240. Call (331) 310-8471 and we’ll assess your specific lock over the phone.
Your door frame has moved. Cicero’s freeze-thaw cycle does this every winter. The century-old wood in these bungalow frames swells with moisture, then freezes, and the strike plate shifts just enough that the bolt no longer lines up with the hole. The lock is almost certainly fine. We fix this by repositioning the strike plate, shimming it, and sometimes filing the opening slightly. This repair runs $95-$180, far less than a new deadbolt, and it actually solves the problem. If you’d like us to take a look, call (331) 310-8471 for a firm quote.
Yes. We design and install master key systems for multi-unit buildings in Cicero, including three-flats and courtyard buildings. With a master key system, each tenant gets a key that opens only their unit, and you get one key that opens every unit and common area. We can set this up on existing mortise locks in many cases, which means you don’t have to replace every lockset. A master key system for a typical three-flat with three entry doors and a common door runs $300-$600 for the initial setup, depending on cylinder condition and hardware. Call (331) 310-8471 and we’ll walk through your building’s layout.
Usually, yes, but it depends on the specific mortise lock and door condition. We do not drill out original hardware unless there’s no other option, and we will always present you with a written scope before any modification. For many Cicero homes, the better solution is a motorized smart cylinder that replaces the existing mortise cylinder while leaving the original body and trim intact. That preserves the 1910s look while giving you keypad or app-based entry. Costs for this type of conversion run $350-$600. If your heart is set on a full smart deadbolt above the mortise lock, we can do that too, and we’ll reinforce the door properly. Call (331) 310-8471 to discuss your door specifically.
Yes, and this is one of the most common commercial requests we get along the Cermak Road corridor. Those old skeleton-key mortise locks are easy to bypass and impossible to control. We replace the cylinder with a modern pin-and-tumbler cylinder in a restricted keyway if you want copy control, or a standard commercial keyway for simplicity. The existing mortise body usually stays. This upgrade runs $180-$350 per lock depending on the cylinder type and whether we need to source a replacement faceplate. Commercial work gets a written scope and a flat per-lock price before we start. Call (331) 310-8471 for an exact quote on your storefront.
Contact Novak Lock & Security in Cicero
If you need lock installation, rekeying, or a straight answer about whether your 1910s mortise lock is worth saving, call (331) 310-8471. You’ll get a live person, a firm price in writing before anyone is dispatched, and a background-checked technician who will leave you a photo record of the work. No pressure, no bait pricing, no surprises at the door. That’s been the rule since 2002, and it’s not changing.
Written by Daniel Novak, Owner at Novak Lock & Security.
Lock Installation & Rekey in Nearby Areas