Is one allowed to change locks in an apartment they are renting?

[ave1024]

Originally Posted by sci

The landlord allways should have a key. It is his/her property and needs access to it in case of emergency. If there is a problem they contact the owner not the tenant. If the owner can not get in and has to break down the door, he will most likely have you give you the bill or evict you for changing the lock and not giving him a key. If you want to 'Have the only key " to your place, buy your own house.

Ditto. And if you change your locks without telling the landlord and you end up delaying the landlord in getting access in an emergency (like a water leak), expect to get a large bill from the landlord.

[sirtiger]

Originally Posted by johnrain

My roomate told me my landlord entered my room in a non emergency situation. Is that against the law?

yes

[SandyJet]

Changing locks does not help at all in Great Neck as most landlords eat lox

[nardwar]

While the answer to this question will vary from state to state, it is my understanding that in Los Angeles, CA, landlords are expected to make reasonable accommodations for tenants. Moreover, if you have a specific reason you would like to change the locks beyond just changing them for the sake of changing them, my understanding is there is a reasonable expectation that the landlord cooperates with you, so long as there is no unnecessary financial hardship placed upon them. Generally, they would like to at least have access to the unit in the case of some sort of emergency situation. In the case of a person with disabilities, there are a whole other set of laws and protections in place and should you fall into that category it's likely you will have much greater mileage, as I believe those laws to be federally enacted.

[IBEW3]

Originally Posted by johnrain

My roomate told me my landlord entered my room in a non emergency situation. Is that against the law?

Technically, they are only permitted to enter with advanced notice (to allow an exterminator in, repair, etc.) or without notice in an emergency (fire, smoke, sprinkler, gas leak, etc.). It's a very gray area, because if you call them on entering for no reason, they simply can say "there was a report of a gas odor and we had to check...", " there was water dripping in the basement and we thought it was coming from your unit...", etc...you get the point.
I suggest an inexpensive webcam. If you ever see them in there you can at least see what they're doing. Depending on your layout, you may see quite a bit with a camera or at least have evidence they were in there and can call them on it so they know you know...


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