To change the locks after the workmen are done?

[MaybeTomorrowItllBeOK]

Evening.

Asking here for the traffic.

Have just bought a new house.

For me #1 job was replace the locks.

But actually for the next week or so we have the option of leaving the workmen (getting some immediate work done while we stay elsewhere) a key so they can come and go and get the job done quicker while we aren't living there.

So I'm thinking to delay the locksmith until they're done? Right move do you think?

What are you thinking rhe old owners are going to break in and rob you?

Never, ever let anyone try to persuade you NOT to change your lock(s) as often as you damn well please.

Peace of mind and valid insurance cover, and good boundaries, are something I treasure. Just saying.

<Awaits batshit thread>

I would do both. You have no idea how many people have the current keys. You want the site to be secure particularly while you seem staying there and need to be able to account for the keys.

I would do both too. Change it.

I have never ever changed the locks in any of the 4 different properties I've owned. Why on earth do you think it's a risk?

What about people who rent? There must be loads of keys floating around for rental properties.

Have you ever heard a news story about someone who didn't change the locks and came home to find Alan and Barbara sitting in their front room watching the telly?

I would also do both. Yes it’s a pain and a bit of an expense but peace of mind is priceless.

Whatever it takes to make you feel relaxed & secure OP.

Previous owners might have left keys with randoms & cheeky builders/trades might have had copies cut. Unlikely but sh*t happens.

Let builders have the key but yes, I’d get the locks changed after they’re finished. Im a cautious sort. 🙄

Workmen or not I'd never not change the locks when I moved into a property.

Nothing to do with the owners particularly.

What about people they've perhaps leant keys to? Who's not to say a workmen they once used kept a copy? Or someone dodgy at the estate agents made a copy.

It's just common sense when you buy a new property (or is to me anyway...)

I've never changed any locks and I've lived in rented and owned properties for 25 years.

The house next door to me was stripped in the middle of the night whilst the owners were on holiday. A holiday that was written in MASSIVE letters on the calendar. Whoever did it used keys and they had had the builders in.

Ive never changed any locks either. Unless you live in an area rife with burglary im not sure there's much point, and since when did not having a key stop a burglar?

I didn't bother changing locks in my first flat - bought it from a couple who had lived there for years, but my current one had been rented out to what appeared to be large groups of students, so as a PP pointed out, probably multiple keys in circulation.

Case of assessing the risk; I've not bothered with contractors, but I'm careful about who I use, esp if they're working here when I'm not about.

Trades are not copying keys to break into your home. What a frightening place it must be inside your mind!

Just get one of those special ones where you need a code to get a new key cut. That way you can give a key to whoever you want they cannot make a copy.

The locks are more expensive, but they are high security too. Cheap eurocylinder/barrel locks are simple to break into but the high security ones are almost impossible for a normal burglar to pick or destroy.

There are batshit people that will see nothing wrong with letting themselves in to collect post etc. You should always change the locks!

I think you are right for peace of mind and insurance. Of course the chances are small but it's far better to know you control all keys to your property. You have no idea what the previous owner did, family, neighbours, cleaners, workmen, airbnb...

We bought a property that had been both rented and airbnb'd. Changed locks straight away.

I weirdly had this thought when I visited old friends in the road I grew up in. My parents had moved out about a year prior to me going back and I realised as I drove past the house that I still had their house key on my set of keys. I did wonder if the new owner had changed the locks - although to be clear I didn't have any intention of checking to see!

Change the locks OP- small cost to eliminate the worry. We changed the locks when we bought our house. Maybe it was a waste of money, but at least we know no previous owner/tenant can get in.

I would. Can't be too careful. And if they're honest, the workmen would be glad you did that too.

Well that's a new one on me! Never in my 64 years have I heard of anyone changing the locks when they move into a new property. Nor have I ever heard of anyone getting into a property they no longer live in, nor one they worked in. Even my super cautious DF didn't think about doing such a thing.

If you want to change the locks then of course you can do so - but I would hate to be so suspicious of others that I felt it necessary.

We're moving this week and I'm having all the locks changed, the house has been empty for a while (deceased estate) with various people having access to the keys including house clearance people and gardeners as well as a handyman and the estate agent. Who knows which neighbours also have a key.

For peace of mind I'd prefer to know who has easy access to my home.

Well it may not stop a burglar but it may invalidate your insurance if there is no sign of forced entry. Everyone has their own perception of risk, so it's up to you.

Doing the job yourself?

Well why not? No harm in it

definitely sensible to change the locks, and if it were me, yes, i'd wait until your current workers have finished, and just do it once before moving in yourselves