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 Residential Locksmith Across Burbank
Locked out in Burbank, or need a lock changed before a new tenant moves in? We get it done. Preston Locksmith & Security sends a background-checked, uniformed technician to your Burbank address with a live-trackable arrival time, a written price before work starts, and the tools to handle everything from a seized 1920s mortise cylinder to a brand-new smart lock. Call (409) 405-4485 and a live person answers, 24/7, no voicemail tree. We know Burbank’s locks because we work on them every day, from the Magnolia Park bungalows to the postwar tracts up by the hills.
A residential lockout in Burbank typically costs between $85 and $150 for a standard non-destructive entry. If you just need a rekey, that runs $20 to $35 per cylinder. Those are real numbers, quoted before we dispatch, and they don’t change when the tech shows up at your door.
Why Preston Locksmith & Security Is Burbank’s Preferred Residential Locksmith Company
Three things matter when you hire a locksmith in Burbank: the price is written before anyone gets dispatched, the person at your door is exactly who we said was coming, and the work holds up. We do all three. Kevin Yoon leads our team, and every job is backed by the 365-Day Done Right Promise: if a repair fails within a year, a tech comes back and fixes it free, no argument.
Our technicians text you a photo and their name before arrival, so when the knock comes, you don’t have to guess who’s on the other side. That matters in Burbank, where apartment buildings along Verdugo Avenue and quiet streets off Glenoaks Boulevard mean a locksmith might be working at your front door or your upstairs neighbor’s. You know who’s coming, and the price is already locked in writing.
For a local, independent operation, we move fast. Burbank is dense enough that a tech can reach most addresses in under 30 minutes from dispatch. We carry parts for Schlage, Kwikset, and Baldwin deadbolts as well as Medeco and Yale hardware, so a hardware swap rarely means a second trip.
Smart Lock Installation in Burbank
Smart Lock Installation in Burbank has gone from a futuristic idea to something renters and owners ask for on the regular, and most of the time, the existing deadbolt has to come off the door. Here’s what actually happens: we pull the old deadbolt, check that the door is aligned correctly, install the new smart lock, and pair it with your phone or keypad. We also verify that the deadbolt actually throws fully into the strike plate, because a smart lock that doesn’t fully extend is just an expensive latch.
A standard smart lock installation in Burbank runs $150 to $250 in labor, plus the cost of the lock itself. If you buy the lock and want us to handle the install, we’ll quote that before dispatch. If you want us to supply it, we’ll give you a written price for the hardware and the labor together.
What Burbank Renters Should Know About Smart Locks
Renters in Burbank apartments need landlord sign-off before any lock is changed. We see this all the time in buildings near the Burbank Town Center and up along Buena Vista. If your landlord says yes, a smart lock swap is a one-hour job, and we can rekey it to your existing key so the landlord still has access and you don’t have to pay for new keys.
Schlage Encode vs. Yale Assure on Burbank Doors
Schlage Encode is the most common request we get in Burbank because it connects to Wi-Fi directly, no hub needed. Yale Assure is popular in apartment conversions where the door is thinner and needs a smaller footprint. Both work on Burbank’s mix of older wood doors and newer steel entry doors, but an old door with a sagging frame will need to be adjusted first, or the motor will bind on the bolt.
Locked Out of Apartment in Burbank
Locked Out of Apartment in Burbank is the most common call we take, and the drill should never come out first. Non-destructive entry, using a bypass tool that slips between the door and frame, or a specialized pick, works on almost every standard apartment lock in Burbank. Our standard apartment lockout runs $85 to $150, depending on the lock type and time of day. That price is quoted before the tech leaves for your address.
We got a call from a renter locked out of a second-floor apartment near Olive Avenue and Keystone Street in the Magnolia Park area. Our tech opened the door with a non-destructive entry tool in under two minutes, no drilling, no damage. The landlord then hired us to rekey all four units to a single master key system, and we upgraded the street-facing doors with Schlage ANSI Grade 1 deadbolts. We quoted before dispatch, confirmed the total on the doorstep, and left every tenant with a working key that same afternoon.
When Non-Destructive Entry Isn’t Possible
Some Burbank apartments have old mortise locks with internal parts that have seized from decades of marine-layer humidity. If the cylinder won’t turn, a drill-out becomes necessary, but we’ll tell you that before we do it, not after. The replacement cost gets quoted in writing before the drill bit touches metal.
Locked Out at Night in Burbank
Night lockouts happen. We answer the phone at 11 p.m. the same way we answer at noon: a live person takes your address, gives you a written quote, and sends a tracked tech. If you’re locked out near Riverside Drive or anywhere in the flats, you won’t be waiting for a callback. Call (409) 405-4485 and you’ll talk to a person, not a machine.
Trusted Brands We Service in Burbank
The lock on your Burbank door is probably a Kwikset, Schlage, or Baldwin, and those are exactly what we stock, rekey, and repair every day. But we also work on Medeco and Yale hardware, including high-security cylinders that a general handyman won’t touch. For Burbank’s newer apartment buildings and condos, Mul-T-Lock and Abloy restricted keyways show up regularly. We carry pins, cylinders, and common hardware for these brands in our vans, which means a rekey or cylinder swap in Burbank usually finishes in one visit, not two. No chasing parts, no rescheduling.
Common Residential Locksmith Problems We See in Burbank Homes
- Seized cylinders from marine-layer humidity. Burbank sits close enough to the coast that overnight moisture works into brass and steel lock internals, especially on doors that face north or get no morning sun. When a key grinds or sticks, the fix is usually a cylinder clean and re-pin, not a full replacement.
- Original mortise locks in 1920s bungalows. Homes in the Magnolia Park and Burbank Hills areas often still have their original mortise locksets, with internal springs and levers that wear out over decades. We rebuild and rekey those first, because replacing them with a modern cylindrical lock means patching a larger hole and losing the original key control.
- Builder-grade deadbolts on postwar tracts. Houses built in the 1940s through 1960s around Burbank’s flatland neighborhoods often have thin, cheap deadbolts with short throw bolts. A door reinforcement plate and a proper ANSI Grade 1 deadbolt is a half-hour upgrade that makes the door actually resist a shoulder bump.
- Landlords needing multiple units rekeyed at once. Burbank has a huge rental stock, and a landlord with a four-plex or a larger building near the 91505 ZIP often needs all units rekeyed to a master key system. We quote per-cylinder, and the price is the same whether it’s one unit or twelve.
Pricing for Residential Locksmith in Burbank, CA
Here’s what you’ll actually pay for residential locksmith work in Burbank. A standard lockout runs $85 to $150. Rekeying runs $20 to $35 per cylinder, plus a service call of about $50 to $70 depending on your location in Burbank. A new deadbolt installation, including the hardware, runs $120 to $200 per door. Door reinforcement with a strike plate and longer screws runs $40 to $80 per door. These are real ranges based on what we’ve charged across Burbank neighborhoods, from the Burbank Hills down to the 91502 flats. The exact total gets put in writing before we dispatch. Call (409) 405-4485 for a free estimate, and the price on the invoice matches the one on the quote.
We Also Serve Cities Near Burbank
Burbank is our home turf, but our techs also cover Glendale, West Hollywood, Altadena, and Beverly Hills. If you’re in one of those cities and need a Residential Locksmith, the same written-price, live-tracking process applies. No separate dispatch, no different rates.
Serving Burbank, CA - Our Local Coverage Area
We’re based in the Burbank 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 About Residential Locksmith in Burbank
Yes, in most cases. A standard apartment lock in Burbank can be opened with a non-destructive bypass tool in under two minutes, and our techs always try that first. Drilling is a last resort, and if it’s needed, we tell you and get a written sign-off on the new price before the drill comes out. Call (409) 405-4485 for an exact quote, free of pressure.
Yes, and in a 1920s or 1930s Burbank bungalow, rekeying the original mortise lock is almost always the right call. We disassemble the lock body, clean the internal springs and levers, replace the pins, and cut new keys. A mortise rekey in Burbank typically runs $30 to $50 per lock, plus the service call. Replacing a salvageable original mortise lock with a cheap modern knob would be a worse outcome, and we won’t do it. Call (409) 405-4485 and tell us what you’ve got.
Yes, every time. The price we quote on the phone is the price on the invoice. There is no bait figure that swells once the tech arrives. That’s part of The Relay Visibility Guarantee: you get a written price before work begins, a live-trackable arrival time, before-and-after photos, and a written guarantee on the repair. If you’re in Burbank and a locksmith won’t put a number in writing before they dispatch, call (409) 405-4485 instead.
Before our tech arrives in Burbank, you get a text with their name, photo, and a live tracking link. When they knock, they’re in uniform and their name matches the work order. If it doesn’t match, don’t open the door. Kevin Yoon leads the team, and no anonymous subcontracted worker is ever sent to a Burbank address without verification. Call (409) 405-4485 and ask the dispatcher for the tech’s name and photo.
For standard Burbank apartment doors, a Schlage Encode works well if you want Wi-Fi built in with no hub to manage. A Yale Assure is a thinner-profile choice for doors with a smaller footprint, and it also comes in a keyed version so the landlord keeps a physical key backup. Both work on the door types we see across Burbank, but an old door with a misaligned frame will need adjustment before any smart lock will turn the bolt cleanly. Call (409) 405-4485 for a written install quote.
Written by Kevin Yoon, Owner at Preston Locksmith & Security, serving Burbank since 2008.