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 West Town
Lock installation and rekey in West Town usually costs between $95 and $225 for a standard deadbolt or knob rekey, and between $150 and $450 per lock for a full replacement install, with all pricing confirmed in writing before any tech rolls to your street. We know West Town because we work it every week, from the greystones off Division to the three-flats stacked along Chicago Avenue. The thing about locks in this neighborhood is that so many of them are old. Not just worn-out old. Antique old. Mortise locksets from 1910, original cast-iron cylinders, door frames that have racked through a hundred Chicago winters. That’s the work we do here, and it’s why a generic suburban locksmith with a van full of Kwikset deadbolts often can’t finish the job they started. Call Novak Lock & Security at (331) 310-8471 and you’ll get a live person, a written price, and a tech who has actually seen what’s behind the door before.
Why Novak Lock & Security Is West Town’s Preferred Lock Installation & Rekey Company
The reason West Town landlords and homeowners keep our number on file is simple: we quote a firm price on the phone and that price does not change when the tech arrives. That rule has been in place since 2002. It’s written in Haven Standard Clause 1, and every Novak tech is contractually bound to it. No call-out fee appears out of nowhere. No “this will need more work” upsell on the doorstep.
We carry parts for mortise locksets that most shops don’t stock. When a landlord in Ukrainian Village calls about a tenant turnover, we don’t just swap in a modern deadbolt and call it done. We read the existing hardware, determine what can be rekeyed and what’s genuinely failing, and then give the landlord a written scope with a per-cylinder price before any work starts. Every job ends with a documented photo record left with the customer. Not as a favor. As procedure.
All our techs are background-checked, uniformed, and trained to The Haven Standard, the same quality framework that governs every brand in the Haven network. Daniel Novak’s name is on the van and the invoice, and that means the work is held to a different standard than an anonymous call-center dispatch.
Our Lock Installation & Rekey Services in West Town
West Town’s housing stock throws a particular set of problems at every lock job. Here’s how we handle the four services West Town residents ask for most.
Smart Lock Installation
A smart lock on a 1920s solid-wood door in East Village or Noble Square rarely works as a drop-in. The door prep is wrong. The strike is off. The deadbolt throw is misaligned because the frame has shifted over decades. We handle the retrofit properly: mortise conversion plates, reinforced strikes, and cylinders that actually line up. You get a lock that holds and a door that doesn’t bind three months later. Smart lock installation in West Town typically runs $180 to $420 depending on the lock model and how much retrofit work the old door prep requires.
Keyless Entry
Keyless entry systems get asked for constantly along the 606 corridor, especially in condo conversions where owners don’t want to carry keys for the gym, the common door, and the unit. We install and program standalone and networked keyless entry systems, always with a mechanical key override. No all-electronic solution traps you outside when the battery dies or the Chicago cold saps the controller. Keyless entry installation in West Town runs $220 to $550, including programming and a walkthrough.
Keypad Lock
Keypad locks are the most practical upgrade for rental units in Wicker Park and Bucktown, where tenant turnover means codes change more often than leases. We coordinate code changes, master codes, and temporary codes with every install. A keypad lock on an old West Town door still needs proper alignment, so expect the install to include a strike adjustment and possibly a mortise conversion if the original hardware is pre-1910. Keypad lock installation in West Town runs $160 to $390.
Biometric Lock
Biometric is overkill for most West Town front doors, but when a homeowner on Erie or Huron wants fingerprint entry, we install it correctly. Moisture, cold, and direct sun all affect biometric readers, so placement matters. We also make sure the mechanical backup is solid, because a fingerprint reader that fails in February leaves you outside in single digits. Biometric lock installation in West Town runs $280 to $600, and we’ll tell you honestly if your door is a poor candidate before you spend the money.
We also handle Lock Installation & Rekey for key duplication, electronic lock installs, and the full commercial and residential spectrum. If you’re looking for a wider overview of our work in the whole metro, visit our West Town area page to see what else we cover.
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 West Town
We’re factory-authorized on Medeco, Mul-T-Lock, Abloy, Baldwin, and Schlage, and we stock cylinders and tailpieces for all of them locally for West Town customers. That matters when a landlord needs a Baldwin mortise cylinder rebuilt on a Wednesday, not a week after ordering from a distributor. For high-security work, we spec Mul-T-Lock and Abloy cylinders that resist picking and bumping. For entry-grade hardware, we use Schlage and Kwikset with proper deadbolts that meet the ANSI Grade 1 or Grade 2 standard, never the builder-grade junk that fails in a year.
Common Lock Installation & Rekey Problems We See in West Town Homes
- Frozen and seized cylinders in brick exterior walls. West Town’s two-flats and three-flats were built when lock hardware was designed to sit in solid masonry. Modern replacements get installed against uninsulated brick that conducts cold straight to the cylinder. January and February bring a wave of calls to Irish Way and every street off North Avenue for locks that won’t take a key.
- Warped solid-wood doors from a century of weather. A 1910 door has moved. It will never be perfectly square again. When a new deadbolt gets installed without addressing the misalignment, the latch binds and the strike plate sits half an inch off. Every freeze-thaw cycle makes it worse. We fix the alignment first, then install the lock.
- Obsolete mortise cylinder formats. Some Ukrainian Village mortise locksets have cylinder formats no standard keyway accepts. Rekeying isn’t an option. The landlord finds this out the hard way when a “quick rekey” turns into a full hardware replacement that nobody mentioned on the phone. We identify this before the tech arrives, so the written scope matches reality.
- Incomplete tenant turnover rekeys. A landlord rekeys the front entrance and calls it done. The back door and the interior unit lock are still on the old key. The next tenant discovers a stranger with a working key. We always rekey every exterior door and every unit lock, and we document it in the photo record.
Pricing for Lock Installation & Rekey in West Town, IL
We Also Serve Cities Near West Town
We work the whole metro from our Chicago office, dispatching crews to West Town every day and covering the surrounding neighborhoods within 30 to 45 minutes. If you’re outside West Town proper, we routinely handle lock installation and rekey in Chicago, Naperville, Near North Side, and Cicero. Same written pricing, same 365-Day Done Right Promise, same live person on the phone.
Serving West Town, IL - Our Local Coverage Area
We’re based in the West Town 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 West Town
Many original mortise locks can be rekeyed if the cylinder is still serviceable, and we carry replacement mortise cylinders for most pre-war formats. The ones that can’t be rekeyed are those with obsolete cylinder threads or bodies that have cracked from decades of freeze-thaw stress. We call it honestly on the phone: if the lock is rekeyable, we rekey it. If it’s shot, we tell you upfront and write the replacement into the scope. Call (331) 310-8471 for an exact assessment.
Because your lock sits in a masonry wall that conducts heat straight out of the building. Cold air hits the cylinder, any moisture inside it freezes, and the pins won’t move. The fix is a synthetic non-graphite lubricant rated for sub-zero use, and sometimes a cylinder replacement with one that has tighter weather sealing. If your lock seized this winter, call us and we’ll address the cause, not just thaw the symptom, with a free estimate at (331) 310-8471.
Yes, but it requires a locksmith who can build a master key system across mixed hardware formats. We convert all cylinders to a common keyway when possible, or install new mortise cylinders on the antiques so the same key turns everything. It’s a rekey job, not an install job, and it gets quoted flat per cylinder before we start.
Rekeying is legal in Illinois and it’s the right move for rental units. It’s also significantly cheaper than full replacement, which is why West Town landlords standardize on it. The mistake is rekeying only the front entrance. We rekey every exterior door and every unit lock, so no prior tenant retains access. Call (331) 310-8471 for a free rekey estimate for your entire building.
Yes. The key is using a retrofit mortise conversion that preserves the original escutcheon and backplate where possible, and installing the smart cylinder in the existing body. We’ve done this on dozens of West Town doors, and the resulting install looks close to original. Where the door prep is too far gone, we’ll tell you and give you options before touching the hardware.
Written by Daniel Novak, Owner at Novak Lock & Security, serving West Town, IL. All work backed by the 365-Day Done Right Promise.