Smart locks
House lockouts
Re-keying
Deadbolt upgrades
Schlage
Kwikset
Car keys & fobsNon-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.
Get your free estimateLocksmith in Fairfax, CA
Most locksmith calls in Fairfax start with a rekey, and most Fairfax rekeys are different from the ones we handle in the newer Marin suburbs. The town’s housing stock runs heavily to early-20th-century bungalows and hillside cabins with original wood doors, vintage mortise and rim locks, and frames that have settled out of square over decades of damp redwood shade. That means rekeying here is less about swapping a deadbolt and more about matching cylinders to old hardware that a string of owners and renters have altered. If you need a lock rekeyed, a car key made, or help getting back into your home, call Citadel Locksmith at (833) 589-8078.
Why Fairfax Homes Are Different
Fairfax sits in a shaded, damp redwood microclimate west of the Marin Civic Center, and that single fact changes the kind of locksmith work we do here more than any Zip code difference. Exterior door hardware and lock cylinders face year-round moisture that accelerates corrosion. Wooden doors swell and stick through the wet season, then dry out and shift again in summer, which throws strike plates and latch alignment off by fractions of an inch that matter. A deadbolt that worked fine in July can bind hard by February, not because the lock failed, but because the door moved around it.
The housing itself compounds the issue. Much of Fairfax is early-to-mid-20th-century single-family bungalows, cottages, and hillside cabins with original wood doors and older mortise or rim locks. Many of these homes have been renovated piecemeal over decades, so hardware varies wildly from door to door. You might have a Schlage deadbolt on the front, a rim lock from the 1940s on the back, and a Baldwin mortise set on a side door that hasn’t been serviced since the Carter administration. Frames are often out of square, hinge screws are stripped, and we regularly see cylinders that were installed by a previous owner who didn’t know the difference between a 5-pin and 6-pin keyway.
The town’s walkable, tight-knit downtown and its mix of long-time residents and weekenders also drive a steady stream of lockouts and rekeys tied to rental turnover and second-home arrivals. Fairfax isn’t a place where people replace doors every decade. They restore them, adjust them, and call someone who understands old hardware.
Styles & brands we work with
Our Main Fairfax Services
Fairfax homeowners call us most often for two things: car key replacement and emergency lockout help. Both are covered below.
Car Key Replacement in Fairfax
Losing the only key to your car on a Fairfax hillside is a special kind of problem, because many of the narrow lanes above downtown leave little room for a tow truck and no realistic way to get the car to a dealer quickly. We come to the vehicle, cut and program a new key on site, and save you the step of arranging transport to a dealership. The damp climate also means older ignitions can be harder on worn key blanks, so our work here often involves cutting to worn lock tolerances rather than factory fresh specs. For the full scope of what we handle, see Car Key Replacement in Fairfax.
Emergency Locksmith in Fairfax
Lockouts in Fairfax don’t follow business hours, and the older doors here make emergency entry a job for someone who respects the hardware. A forced entry on a 1920s bungalow door can mean splitting the frame or destroying a mortise lock that’s been in place for generations. We approach urgent openings with the goal of getting you back inside without turning your front door into a restoration project. Response to Fairfax is available day or night. For details on emergency service, see Emergency Locksmith in Fairfax.
What happens when you call
- 1
A real person answersNo phone trees — you reach a local pro.
- 2
You get an upfront price rangeHonest numbers before anyone is dispatched.
- 3
A background-checked tech heads outLicensed & insured, dispatched right away.
- 4
You approve before work beginsNothing starts until you say go.
Rekey Locks in Fairfax
Rekeying in Fairfax is the fastest way to take back control of who holds a key, and in this town it’s rarely a straightforward cylinder swap. Homes here carry decades of key copies floating through ex-renters, neighbors, house sitters, and contractors, and the doors themselves are often vintage mortise and rim hardware that a previous owner rekeyed with mismatched cylinders. Damp coastal air has settled into the mechanisms, and wooden doors have shifted enough that simply fitting a new key without addressing the alignment leaves you with a lock that works on the bench and binds in the door. We rekey locks here by starting with the existing hardware, matching the cylinder to what’s actually installed, and adjusting the strike and latch so the new key turns cleanly in a door that has moved since 1948. Our full rekey process is detailed at Rekey Locks.
Lock Rekey
Signs you need it
You’ve closed on a Fairfax house, ended a tenancy, or lost track of how many copies of your house key are floating around town.
What it costs in Fairfax
Standard lock rekeying in Fairfax typically runs from $40 – $120 per lock depending on the cylinder type and security level.
How we do it
We remove the cylinder, replace the pins inside to match a new key, then test the lock in the door and adjust the latch or strike if the frame has settled.
Rekey Door Lock
Signs you need it
The door lock itself works fine mechanically, but a new roommate, caregiver, or property manager means the old key should no longer operate it.
What it costs in Fairfax
Rekeying a single door lock in Fairfax generally falls between $60 – $150, with older mortise locks trending toward the higher end.
How we do it
We match the new key to the existing cylinder depth, re-pin it to the new key code, and verify that the keyway still turns freely in the humidity-swollen door.
Keyed Alike
Signs you need it
You carry a separate key for every door on your Fairfax property and want one key that works the front, back, and side entries.
What it costs in Fairfax
Keying multiple locks alike in Fairfax typically costs $40 – $120 per cylinder, so a three-door home usually lands in the $120 – $360 range.
How we do it
We re-pin each cylinder to the same key code so one key operates every lock, then confirm the key turns smoothly in each door, adjusting hardware as needed.
What Rekey Locks Costs in Fairfax
| Item | Typical range in Fairfax |
|---|---|
| Rekey a standard residential lock | $40 – $120 per lock |
| Rekey a vintage mortise or rim lock | $60 – $150 per lock |
| Key multiple locks alike (3 doors) | $120 – $360 total |
How long does rekeying take in Fairfax?
Most Fairfax rekey jobs take 20 – 40 minutes per lock, with older mortise locks adding time if the cylinder needs cleaning from years of damp-air corrosion. Call (833) 589-8078 to schedule.
Can you rekey my old Fairfax door lock, or do I need to replace it?
In most cases we can rekey the existing hardware, including vintage mortise and rim locks, as long as the cylinder is intact and not corroded beyond repair. Call (833) 589-8078 and we’ll confirm over the phone.
Brands We Service in Fairfax
Our Fairfax work spans the brands serious about security. We regularly rekey and replace Schlage and Kwikset residential hardware, and we’re fluent in high-security cylinders from Medeco and Yale, which matters when a Fairfax homeowner asks for something pick-resistant on a hillside door. Our brands page has the full picture, including parts we carry for same-day turnaround on common Fairfax hardware.
Pricing for Locksmith in Fairfax, CA
| Service | Typical range in Fairfax |
|---|---|
| Lock Rekey | $40 – $120 per lock |
| Locksmith Rekey | $40 – $120 per lock |
| Rekey Door Lock | $60 – $150 per lock |
| Rekey Service | $40 – $150 per lock |
| Keyed Alike | $40 – $120 per cylinder |
| Car key replacement (basic) | $75 – $150 |
| Car key replacement (with transponder/chip) | $95 – $250 |
| Emergency lockout (residential) | $75 – $200 |
| Emergency lockout (automotive) | $65 – $150 |
| Rekey after lockout | $40 – $120 per lock, plus service call |
| Mortise or rim lock labor (vintage Fairfax doors) | $60 – $150 per lock |
Two things push Fairfax prices toward the upper end of these ranges: older mortise and rim locks that require more labor than a modern deadbolt swap, and door frames that have settled enough to need latch and strike adjustment before a new key turns cleanly. The price we quote on the phone is the price on the invoice, and there is no call-out surcharge added on arrival.
Neighborhoods We Serve in Fairfax
We cover all of Fairfax, including the hillside streets where parking is tight and the older cabins need a lighter touch. We’re typically in Fairfax within the hour for urgent calls, and we schedule rekey work around your day.
- Downtown Fairfax
- Cascade Canyon
- Fairfax Hillside (the lanes above Bolinas Road)
- Manor Hill
- Deer Park
Service Area – Cities Near Fairfax
Citadel Locksmith has served Fairfax since 2011, and we also work in the surrounding Marin communities. If you’re nearby, we cover Sleepy Hollow, CA, San Anselmo, CA, Ross, CA, and San Rafael, CA with the same rekey, car key, and emergency response service.
Serving Fairfax, CA — Our Local Coverage Area
We’re based in the Fairfax 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 Locksmith in Fairfax
For emergency lockouts in Fairfax, we’re typically on scene within an hour, and often faster depending on where you are in town. Older doors here mean we carry specialized picks and tension tools for mortise and rim locks, so we’re not improvising when we arrive. Call (833) 589-8078 for a real-time ETA.
No permit is required for rekeying locks on a private Fairfax home, and HOA rules in Marin rarely restrict lock work on your own doors. If you’re a landlord or property manager, rekeying between tenants is standard practice and takes under an hour per door. Call (833) 589-8078 to schedule.
Yes, we cover both Fairfax Zip codes, 94930 and 94978, including the downtown corridor and the hillside streets off Bolinas Road. The older cabins in the hills often need the most hardware adjustment, so we schedule extra time for those jobs. Call (833) 589-8078 and tell us your street, and we’ll confirm exactly when we can be there.
What happens when you call
- 1A real person answersNo phone trees — talk to a local locksmith pro.
- 2You get an upfront price rangeHonest numbers before anyone is dispatched. No surprises.
- 3We come out and measureLicensed & insured, at a time that suits you — the visit and the quote are both free.
- 4You get the price in writingLine-itemed, yours to keep, and nothing starts until you say go.
What Fairfax Customers Say
"Does good work. Card payment was a bit of a production, so have another option handy."
— Norma Herrera"Programmed a transponder key for a 2014 model that the dealership wanted an absurd amount for. Same key, fraction of the price, took him twenty minutes in my driveway."
— Grace Lin"Locked out at eleven at night with a kid asleep in the car. He was there in 25 minutes, had the door open in under two, and did not do the thing where the price goes up once he's standing in front of you."
— Greg Lawson