Can a Tenant Change the Locks in NY? A Westchester Guide

In most Westchester rentals, whether a tenant can change the locks comes down to the lease. Many leases say you need the landlord's permission, and many require you to give the landlord a copy of any new key. So read the lease, ask the landlord in writing, and hand over a key if the lease calls for one. The rule in the other direction is clearer. Under New York State law, a landlord cannot evict or try to evict an occupant who has lived in a unit for 30 consecutive days or more, or who has a lease, without a court order, and changing the entrance lock without giving that occupant a key is one of the acts the law lists. This post is general information, not legal advice.

Start with the lease

For most renters the answer sits in the lease rather than in one simple state rule, so the lease is the first place to look. Read it with a few questions in mind.

• Is there a clause about locks or alterations? Many leases treat a new lock as an alteration that needs the landlord's consent.
• Does the landlord need a key? Leases often require the tenant to give the landlord a working key to every lock on the unit, so they can get in for repairs or an emergency.
• Who fixes a broken lock? Some leases make it the landlord's job, some the tenant's.
• What happens at move-out? Some leases ask you to leave the original cylinder in place, or to hand over every key you had cut.

If the lease says nothing, that is not a yes. It means the question goes to the landlord.

Ask the landlord, and get the answer in writing

An email is enough. Say what you want and why. Common reasons are a lost key, a roommate who moved out with a copy, a lock that has worn out, or a scare at the door. A specific request is easier to say yes to.

A few things make the conversation simpler:

• Offer a key. If the lease requires one, say up front that the landlord will get a copy.
• Ask for a rekey rather than a new lock. Rekeying changes the pins inside the existing cylinder, so the landlord's hardware stays on the door and every old key stops working. It is usually the smaller change to ask for.
• Ask who arranges it. Some landlords prefer to send their own locksmith. Some are happy for you to book one.
• Ask who pays. That is between you and the landlord, and the lease may already say.

Keep the reply. If anyone asks later whether the change was approved, the email answers the question.

What a landlord cannot do

New York's Real Property Actions and Proceedings Law has a section on unlawful eviction, RPAPL § 768. It applies statewide, so it covers Westchester as well as the city.

In plain terms, it is unlawful to evict or try to evict an occupant who has lived in a unit for 30 consecutive days or more, or who has a lease, without a court order. Changing the entrance lock without giving the occupant a key is one of the acts the law lists. Civil penalties apply.

So a landlord who wants a tenant out has to go through the court. Swapping the lock while the tenant is at work is not a shortcut the law allows.

If you come home and your key no longer fits, contact a tenant attorney or a local tenant group as soon as you can. They can tell you what applies to your situation and what to do next.

Advice written for New York City is not Westchester law

A lot of what you will read online about tenants and locks in New York is written for apartments in the five boroughs, and it often cites city rules. Westchester is outside New York City, so those rules do not automatically apply to a rental in Tuckahoe or White Plains. The statewide section above does. For anything beyond it, ask a tenant attorney or a local tenant group rather than relying on an article written for a Manhattan apartment.

Apartments, co-ops and the building's own keys

In a house rental, the conversation is usually between you and one landlord. In an apartment or co-op building, the building has its own interests in the lock.

White Plains apartments. The buildings downtown and near the Harlem Line station often have management offices, front desks and building-wide key policies. Ask management, not just the owner of your unit, before anyone touches the lock. The White Plains locksmith page covers apartment work in the city.

Tuckahoe co-ops. Many of the buildings near the Tuckahoe station are co-ops or rentals with a super and a managing agent. If you own co-op shares, your proprietary lease and the house rules decide what you may change. If you rent a co-op apartment from a shareholder, both the shareholder and the building may have a say. The Tuckahoe locksmith page has more on the village.

Two building issues come up again and again: a master key system that lets the super into every unit, and fire-rated entry doors with rules about drilling and added hardware. Our guide to apartment locks in Eastchester and Tuckahoe covers both, with the questions to ask management.

What a careful locksmith asks before changing a rental lock

Changing a lock on a rental is not just a hardware job, so expect questions before any work starts.

• Do you live here? An ID with the address, or the lease on your phone.
• Has the landlord agreed? The email from the landlord settles it.
• Is the lock part of a master key system? If so, the change may need to go through the building.
• Rekey or replace? For a tenant, rekeying is usually the right job. The hardware stays, the keys change.
• How many keys, and one for the landlord? Decide before the keys are cut.

The same care applies when the request comes from the other side. A request to change the lock on a unit someone is living in, without that person getting a key, is exactly the situation § 768 describes, and a locksmith should ask questions before touching it.

For the rekey itself, our lock rekeying service covers apartment and house locks alike.

When the tenant moves out

The lock usually goes back to being the landlord's problem at move-out. Hand back every key you had cut, including the one you gave a dog walker. Most landlords rekey between tenants anyway, so the next tenant starts with keys nobody else holds. If you are a landlord reading this, our guide to rekeying between tenants covers the turnover from your side.

Frequently asked questions

Can my landlord change the locks on me?

Not as a way to get you out. Under RPAPL § 768, a landlord cannot evict or try to evict an occupant who has lived in the unit 30 consecutive days or more, or who has a lease, without a court order, and changing the entrance lock without giving the occupant a key is one of the listed acts. If it happens, contact a tenant attorney or a local tenant group.

Do I have to give my landlord a key?

That depends on your lease. Many leases require it so the landlord can reach the unit for repairs or an emergency. If you change or rekey a lock with permission, plan to hand over a copy.

Can I add a deadbolt or a smart lock to my apartment?

Ask first. Adding hardware usually means drilling the door, and apartment entry doors are often fire-rated, with building rules about what can go on them. Get the answer from the landlord or management in writing before you buy anything.

What if I am locked out of my apartment?

Call the super, the front desk or management first, since someone there may have a key. If no one can help, a locksmith can open the door, and you should have your ID or the lease ready to show the apartment is yours. Our emergency lockout service runs any hour.

Who pays to rekey a rental lock?

The lease may say. If it does not, it is something to agree with the landlord before the work, in the same email that asks for permission.

Once your landlord has agreed, call Larchmont Locksmith NY at (914) 255-6611 to rekey the lock, any hour.