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 Tempe
Lock installation and rekeying in Tempe runs $25-$45 per cylinder for a standard rekey, and $85-$250 per lock for most new installations, quoted in writing before we dispatch. That price is the price on the invoice. Haven Standard Clause 1. We serve every Tempe neighborhood, from the apartment corridors along Apache Boulevard and Rural Road to the acreage lots south of the U.S. 60. If you need a rekey before ASU’s fall move-in, or you’re keying a detached workshop and gate to match your house, call (331) 310-8471 and a live person answers, 24/7.
Why Novak Lock & Security Is Tempe’s Preferred Lock Installation & Rekey Company
Novak Lock & Security has worked this market since 2002, and Tempe is different from every city around it. Mesa and Chandler have steady turnover. Tempe has a tidal wave. The two weeks before ASU’s fall semester send property managers along Rural Road and University Drive into bulk rekey mode: 20, 40, sometimes 60 units at once, all needing legal move-in rekeys before tenants arrive. We pre-schedule those accounts in June so our Tempe customers aren’t waiting days in mid-August when every other shop is buried.
Daniel Novak built the company on one rule: the dispatcher quotes a firm price, and the technician is not permitted to change it at the doorstep. That rule has held since day one. Every Tempe job starts with a written price and ends with a documented photo record, left with you at completion. Not a promise, a procedure.
Response time to Tempe neighborhoods is typically 45-60 minutes for emergency calls, and scheduled work runs on a written scope with a flat per-lock price. We’re already in the area daily. We know the garden-style complexes off Apache Boulevard, the condos near Tempe Town Lake, and the larger lots where a house, a workshop, and a gate all need to be keyed alike in one visit.
Our Lock Installation & Rekey Services in Tempe
Our Lock Installation & Rekey team covers everything from a single deadbolt replacement to a 60-unit master key system. Here’s what Tempe calls us for most often.
Smart Lock Installation
Smart locks on Tempe rental units face a specific problem: 110°F summers and relentless UV degrade plastic keypads, battery compartment seals, and circuit boards far faster than in Phoenix’s milder northern suburbs. We install smart locks rated for direct sun exposure, and we mount them so battery changes don’t require removing the whole unit. Expect $180-$350 for a quality smart deadbolt installed, programmed, and demonstrated.
Keyless Entry and Keypad Lock Installation
Keyless entry makes sense for Tempe’s rental turnover. Property managers swap tenant codes instead of cutting new keys every May and August. We install keypad deadbolts and lever sets from Schlage, Kwikset, and commercial-grade brands, typically $150-$300 per door including installation and programming. If you’re managing a complex, we’ll set up a master code structure so you retain access while tenants hold individual codes.
Biometric Lock Installation
Biometric locks read fingerprints and don’t need keys or codes at all. They work well on Tempe properties where multiple people need different access levels: a homeowner, a house cleaner, a property manager. Installation runs $250-$450 depending on the hardware grade, and we calibrate the fingerprint readers on site so they read cleanly the day we leave.
Master Key Systems
This is the service Tempe property managers ask for more than any other. A 1970s garden-style complex off Apache Boulevard has 30 or 40 units, each with its own deadbolt, and the manager carries a ring of keys that opens all of them. A master key system does that with one key. We design and install these systems using Schlage or Sargent cylinders, keyed so tenants can’t cross-open units. Pricing depends on cylinder count, but a 40-unit complex typically lands between $1,800 and $3,200 for full master keying, quoted in writing before we start.
What happens when you call
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A real person answersNo phone trees - you reach a local pro.
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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 Tempe
We’re factory-authorized on Medeco, Mul-T-Lock, Abloy, Baldwin, and Schlage, and we stock cylinders and parts for all of them in our local service vehicles. What that means in Tempe: when a Mul-T-Lock deadbolt on a Mill Avenue condo fails, we don’t order parts and schedule a return visit. We carry the pinning kits and cylinders on the truck. Same-day repair, same trip, one invoice. For high-security applications, we recommend Mul-T-Lock or Abloy cylinders that can’t be picked or bumped by standard tools. For a Baldwin handle set on a newer Tempe build, we’ll match the finish and the existing keyway.
Common Lock Installation & Rekey Problems We See in Tempe Homes
- Heat-caused frame misalignment: Tempe’s June-through-August heat expands aluminum and steel door frames enough to shift strike plates. A deadbolt that throws smoothly at 8 a.m. binds at 3 p.m. It’s usually the frame, not the lock. We adjust the strike plate and realign the bolt path instead of replacing a perfectly good cylinder.
- Worn tumblers in old garden-style complexes: The 1960s-1980s apartments along Apache Boulevard and Rural Road have lock hardware cycled through so many tenants that the pin-and-tumbler cylinders are fatigued. Rekeying a worn cylinder just gives you a new key in a weak lock. We’ll tell you when replacement is the honest call.
- Half-keyed acreage properties: Homeowners on Tempe’s larger lots often have a house key, a workshop key, and a gate key that don’t match because past locksmiths priced per visit. A single “key everything alike” appointment costs less and ends with one key on your ring. We quote that as a flat job, not as three separate dispatches.
- UV-damaged smart lock hardware: Plastic keypad faces crack and fade in Tempe’s sun. Battery compartment seals shrink and let monsoon humidity in. We replace failed smart locks with models built for direct exposure, and we’ll tell you which brands hold up on south-facing doors.
Pricing for Lock Installation & Rekey in Tempe, AZ
We Also Serve Cities Near Tempe
Our Tempe customers often ask if we handle neighboring cities, and we do. We run daily service through Mesa, Chandler, Gilbert, and Scottsdale, with the same written price guarantee and 45-60 minute emergency response in each. If your property sits near the Tempe-Mesa line or you manage units in both Chandler and Gilbert, one call covers all of it.
Serving Tempe, AZ - Our Local Coverage Area
We’re based in the Tempe 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 Tempe
How early should I book bulk rekeying for my Tempe apartment complex before ASU’s fall move-in?
Book in June. The last two weeks before ASU’s fall semester are what Tempe locksmiths call the rekey rush: property managers along Rural Road and University Drive call in bulk orders for 20-60 units simultaneously, and shops that didn’t pre-schedule those accounts in June simply can’t absorb the volume. Tenants end up waiting days for legal move-in rekeys. We pre-schedule bulk accounts starting in June so August work is already locked in. Call (331) 310-8471 with your unit count and we’ll set the schedule in writing.
My Tempe deadbolt sticks every afternoon in summer but works fine at night - is the lock failing?
Probably not. Heat from 110°F afternoons expands the aluminum or steel door frame, which shifts the strike plate just enough to bind the deadbolt bolt. At night the frame contracts and the lock throws cleanly again. It’s a frame alignment problem, not a cylinder problem, and the fix is adjusting the strike plate and bolt path. We do that in one visit, usually without replacing any hardware. Call (331) 310-8471 and we’ll diagnose it on site.
Can you key my detached workshop, gate, and house all alike in one visit in Tempe’s acreage areas?
Yes. This is one of the most common calls we get from Tempe homeowners south of the U.S. 60 and out toward the Kyrene corridor. The house, the workshop, the side gate, and the shed get keyed to a single key, in one scheduled visit, at a flat per-cylinder price. That’s cheaper than three separate dispatches and it ends with one key on your ring. Tell us how many lock cylinders you have and we’ll quote the whole job in writing before we come out.
What lock hardware survives Tempe’s UV and heat on smart locks for rental units near Rural Road?
Steer toward smart locks with metal keypad faces and sealed battery compartments. Brands vary by model, but the failure pattern in Tempe is consistent: plastic keypads crack under UV, battery seals shrink in the heat, and monsoon humidity corrodes circuit boards. We install smart locks rated for direct sun exposure and we mount them so battery swaps don’t require unmounting the lock. Expect $180-$350 installed for hardware that will actually survive a Tempe summer. Call (331) 310-8471 and we’ll recommend a specific model for your door’s sun exposure.
Do Tempe property managers need master key systems for garden-style complexes built in the 1960s-1980s?
If you’re managing more than four or five units, yes. The alternative is a ring of 40 keys and a guessing game at every lockout. A master key system gives you one key that opens every unit, while each tenant key opens only their own door. We build these on Schlage or Sargent cylinders, keyed so tenants can’t cross-open units. A 40-unit complex typically runs $1,800-$3,200 for full master keying. We’ll quote your exact cylinder count in writing. Call (331) 310-8471.
Lock Installation & Rekey in Tempe, AZ - Get It Scheduled Before the Rush
Tempe’s lock needs follow ASU’s academic calendar. If you’re a property manager, June is when you should be on the phone with us, not August 10. Last June, we pre-scheduled a bulk rekey for a 1970s garden-style complex off Apache Boulevard. Every deadbolt had fatigued pin-and-tumbler cylinders from decades of tenant turnover, so we replaced the worn lock cylinders with new Schlage bump-resistant deadbolts and keyed all 40 units to a master key system in one day, before the August rush hit. That’s the kind of scheduling that keeps a Tempe property moving when every other shop is buried.
If you’re a homeowner, there’s no wrong time to call. Rekey after you buy, after a tenant leaves, after a contractor has had a key, or when your deadbolt starts binding in the afternoon heat. We’ll quote a firm price on the phone, show up in a uniform, do the work, and leave you with a written record and photos. That’s the Haven Standard, on every Tempe job since 2002.
Call (331) 310-8471 for a free, written estimate. A live person answers, day or night.
Written by Daniel Novak, Owner at Novak Lock & Security, serving Tempe and the surrounding cities since 2002.
Lock Installation & Rekey in Nearby Areas
