If you are renting, have you ever locked yourself out of your own rented property?
And if so, how do you get back into the Unit, and how much would it cost?
Particularly interested with those living in gated Complex and apartments with security system.
Looking forward to hearing from you.
It is the best way to get another key unless its after hour when realestate is closed. I lived in an apartment once ( half hotel half apartment) and I locked myself out around 8 PM. The hotel concierge refused to make new key without realestate's authorisation. I have to call several locksmith and minimum quote was $250. So, I lied to one of the locksmith and said that another locksmith just offered me $200, and if you are willing to do the job for $150 then i'll final the deal. Otherwise i'll stay at backpackers tonight and go to realestate agent tomorrow. I was lucky that he said ok as he was around the area.
Your first (and probably only) port of call in a gated community/security system situation is to talk with the real estate agent. They will have (should have) spare keys/passes, etc. to get you back in.
If you've simply locked your keys inside (and they're not lost) you'll likely be up for some sort of call out fee. If you've lost the items, you could be up for significant additional costs to get them replaced.
Not a tenant but I locked myself out of my own property one time (long story but I basically closed an automatic door as I was walking out when i shouldn't have) :D
Luckily I left the entrance door open and it was just the security screen door locked and I ripped it off by hand without even making a noise. Amazing security!
But if I was renting still I'd call either the landlord/agent or a locksmith if I can't reach them.
Calm down there hulk.
Sounds more like a fly screen door than a security door.
I won't feel safe now that I know Diji1 has the strength to rip open my fly screen door and have his way with me while I sleep.
Nobody should. Well, unless they're into that sort of thing……or wanting to break that really long hiatus.
Not only that, it was Labor and Liberal's fault that he has the strength to rip open doors!
Wow, amazing security indeed!
Do you go to Gym much?
The correct terminology is:
"Do you even lift bro?"
Actually, I believe it's technically:
"Bro, do you even.."
A standard domestic roller or sectional garage door motor is typically designed with an operating resistance of 7-10 KG. You could have safely forced the door up enough to crawl under without damaging the motor.
It's actually a pretty big security flaw.
That’s the reason why doors leading from the garage to the house are generally ‘solid’ doors instead of hollow core doors, and should have a lock and deadbolt on them as well.
If it's not Crimsafe, it's not crim safe
I have locked myself out a couple of times. Both time I called the caretaker/real estate agent who happens to live in the same apartment building and he opened the lock for me without any charges.
I know of someone constantly lock themselves out a few times a year. but their Onsite Mgr never charged them. Not that they gave him any beer or wine :-)
I had the real estate agents come into my house (that I was renting) after I specifically told them not to.
Simply that I live alone and don't know/trust* these people alone with my possessions, the house was clean and tidy and not the issue.
Lo and behold, when I got home after work I realised they locked the security lock from the inside and pulled the door shut.
I never had a copy of key to that lock, and it put me in a predicament when I got home 1am from work.
I was hungry, smelly, and phone was almost dead. I managed to google a locksmith, call them and wait as my phone died.
I produced a drivers license ID and had to pay with a mobile eftpos machine, I think it was ~$140.
I called the real estate agents about it the next day, and surprise surprise, they didn't care.
So the next week, I reduced my rent by the amount of the locksmith cost.
Never heard any complaints about the missing funds, simply because they didn't care to do a good job and check.
Long story short, that real estate agency closed down after a year.
*I mean if my laptop goes missing, you think they will reimburse me? What about all my data? People are quick to show empty-sympathy, but will hardly right a wrong due to their negligence.
Locked myself out of a 3 story high apartment, Over Christmas last year, Real Estate was closed and no one would help.
Got a very tall ladder off a mate, and climbed up there - pulled off flyscreen from window.
Because that wouldn't look half suspicious…
7 meters high ladder, your mate is a firefighter ?
Construction.
I've had a 22 foot (7 metre) extension ladder for over 30 years. Use it around our single storey house which was built on a slope over 100 years ago.
My lease states that I can pick up keys from the Real Estate agent free of charge during business hours (if I've locked myself out ie keys in the apartment). After hours there is a $250 charge for the property manager to come and let you in. If the keys are lost, you have to pay locksmith fee for rekeying and new swipe fob for the entry door and/or garage remote etc which could be $1000 or something.
Forgot to mention - can't just call a locksmith as the building is swipe access and the swipe fob is on the keyring with the key. Also, you need your fob to swipe to your floor either through the lift or the firestairs. So unless a neighbour from your floor who you know is home and willing to let you (and locksmith, when they arrive) up to the correct floor, you can't get in without the property manager at night. I was only given one set of keys, to my annoyance, as normally I'd stash a spare set with family members in case this happened. I think if I did get locked out accidentally at night or on the weekend I'd probably go and crash with friends or relatives until they next business day and pick the keys up from the real estate on the next day.
Sounds like you are in a safe place and it's good to know you can get to the REA easily during office hours.
I'd be so nervous if I havent got a spare set of keys. Havent had that many friends who'd let me crash with them!
I used to live in an apartment with security gate. I occasionally had to climb the wall, it was not that hard.
Other option would be to wait for someone else to open the gate. Probably wouldn't take more than half an hour.
So your own Unit is not locked? The fact that you seem happy enough if someone open the gate for you?
No, it was not unlocked, I had a key hidden.
fake rock right?
140ex gst for locksmith for your door. I had to buzz my neighbour to open up the door for me.
Wow that's cheap.
I paid $330 inc. GST. Mind you, it was at 4am.
Inner Melb.
I just leave my spare key with a close friend
It's happened to me once after I passed my keys to a mate. It was 2-3am on Saturday morning He assumed that the keys I gave him were a spare set. I normally leave my balcony door unlocked so I climbed from my neighbour's balcony to mine and found that my mate had also locked it on the way out.
I'm sure my agent wouldn't have come out at that time with a spare key.
Ended up calling a locksmith - it annoyed me because he tried to go straight for the drill (which means I would've had to pay for a whole new lock!) and I told him to at least attempt pick it first! Or allow me to use his tools. Anyway, I removed the outside cover with his tools and found that someone had already drilled a "latch bypass" hole. Poked that with a screwdriver and it opened. I'm not sure if he wondered how I know about these things, but I still got charged $250.
Now I just keep a spare door key taped on the bottom of the inside of my mailbox. Worst case, security can let me in the electronic doors to grab the key in my mailbox.
Wow!
I'm amazed too.
Also, in an unrelated matter what is your address?
Step 1: Post on Ozb
Step 2: Ask agent for key
…
Step 4: Profit
You pay a locksmith, wife has done it a few times.
$150 emergency callout for them to pick the lock.
Just out of curiosity, I'm guessing your wife didn't need to show that she owned/rent the property? I've always wonder what is the legal foundation of this and the possibility of using locksmiths to break into property illegally.
Hopefully there is a locksmith code of conduct where they'd check you're the owner first.
Yeah, it gets complicated if it is a Domestic Violence case, and privacy issue….
Usually, once they've unlocked the property for you, they will ask you to show ID to prove that you live there.
This is what they did when I got a locksmith out when I locked myself out late at night.
They will normally ask to prove you live there and if you have ID on you or inside. If the person says inside and doesn't produce when they get in, then cops are called.
If that's all your wife is costing you, it's fine. If not, you might have to get a new Wife LOL
How does this compare to getting someone out to replace a window?
Back in my dark and distant past I smashed a window and climbed in because I couldn't find my keys.
That was one of the more regrettable moments in my life, but now I'm thinking the window repair wouldn't have been much more than a locksmith??
No, actually, it's still pretty regrettable given that the keys were in my pocket the whole time.
Edit: O I just read below - Tshow knows :)
Window doesnt work with high rise apartments; but suspect lock picking is much cheaper than window replacement.
In uni, I locked myself out on Sunday morning.
I called a few locksmith, cheapest is $450 and will come out within 2 hours.
I called a glazier, $150 and can come out within the hour. (Could have left it for the next day too but…)
Crack
Now that's a bargain. If there was some sort of ozb silver gift I would give it to you.
Thanks but now I feel bad because I have no idea what you're saying.
You've aged me.
@[Deactivated]: What! There are people paying subscriptions to get enough coins to eventually award other people with subscriptions in a method that cost more than just buying a subscription for said person?
So racist that he cannot understand any other accent even in written language!
@[Deactivated]: You did not start with I'm not racist but…so hence it is implied. You can't be sure nowadays.
What did th glazier do? Replace a new window?
Just the glass. I wasn't so handy back then but I could do it myself in a few minutes now.
Take out the trim, remove the shards, cut glass to size, glue trim back on. It takes 10 minutes if you have all the tools ready.
Unfortunate you got yourself locked out, but there's always a silver lining: you're a trained Glazier now!
Most people won't have a spare window sized piece of glass lying around at home though…
This is Ozbargain 101. Thanks.
I locked myself out once when I was at uni. I sleepwalked and somehow woke up on my front garden , naked. Luckily I had given my new girlfriend/love of my life a key to my place. I knew that she would come over in-between lectures but I didn't know exactly when. I grabbed a bedsheet that was drying on the clothesline and wrapped it around me like a toga and sat out the front waiting for her to drop by.
I saw the old lady from across the road peaking at me behind her curtains and was a little worried that she would call the cops. Luckily she didn't. It was an hour or so before my gf turned up but it felt like an eternity!
I learned my lesson that day.I now always leave spare shorts on the clothesline.. you never know when they could come handy ;)
If you hid a spare key somewhere in your garden, there would be no need for spare shorts…
We've tried that but my dog keeps finding the hidden keys and bringing them inside, expecting a reward:)
My neighbour has a set of keys. We're close but that close that it'll be ok for me to turn up naked on his doorstep..
Never know unless you try. Might be the start of something wonderful.
@[Deactivated]: Show her your nude physique - Think of it as a random act of kindness. She'll remember it for the rest of her life. "That nice erect boy from next door popped past today".
Doesn't have to be in the ground.
If you have a brick house, hide it in the gaps between the bricks.
It's a weatherboard.
Yes, done it twice,
1st time: Best owner in the whole entire world, dude drove 45 minutes to unlock my door from up north, I tried to give him money for it and he wouldn't take it. Wish I could still live there, was great.
2nd time: Was on a weekend, agent wouldn't pick up any calls or messages for ages, then laterr asked 'What do I want', told him what happend and he just said no, call a lock smith. Never called on before so I just did, took about 15 mins for them to arrive, took 30 seconds to open my door and I was in, no issues at all. Cost $150, would call again in a heart beat that dude as he was super nice. Building has security but I had my card with me so it wasn't an issue, but due to security here, if it came to it, my name is in the buildings system (needed to get your card) to get through security.
I recommend having a copy of your rental agreement somewhere incase you need to print it out for security reasons to prove you live there.
Good tip about have your Rental Agmt. Maybe DropBox?
I've done this before. Tried to lift the toilet window up off the rail to get in, but broke the window instead. Cost me $20, 1 bandaid and a new toilet seat (due to a statue falling and cracking it when i climbed in). Put the new window in myself.
Breaking a window is much cheaper than calling a locksmith.
The pre-requisite is that you have to be of slim-built.
And maybe a bit athletic. I mean that window was about 1.5 metres up. Had I known I was going to break a window, I would have chosen one closer to the ground.
I've locked myself out an embarrassing number of times. Had to call the locksmith to come and get me back in and rekey all the locks. The real estate doesn't have a copy of my keys.
Because you've rekeyed all the locks?
Exactly haha. Though I wouldn't have had to do that if they had a copy in the first place!
What a wonderful community. Woke up to read all these wonderful responses. Some of you really cracked me up, esp JJB. Never know being locked-out can be such a fun event!
For those jumped into balcony, read this: https://au.news.yahoo.com/real-estate-agent-dies-freak-accid…
The nice ladies downstairs have a spare key to my place.
My dad locked himself out of his level 4 apartment he was renting at the time. He ended up climbing the outside of the building up to the balcony and entered through the balcony door he always left unlocked. Would've ended in certain death had he fell. Looking back though it was quite funny.
I live on the top floor, 5 floors up. One morning, I looked out onto my balcony to see a guy who'd climbed up and was clinging onto the outside ledge of my balcony.
Shocked, I asked him what he was doing. He said he was friends with a neighbour "Scotty" who had locked themselves out.
I didn't know who Scotty was, but wasn't going to argue with him in case he slipped and plummeted onto the road below.
Some years later, living in the same apartment, I was locked in.
I was in the toilet and the door handle failed, trapping me.
I had no phone but my visitor on the other side of the door called a locksmith.
In true OzBargain style I was trying to negotiate the call out fee. I had water and a toilet so felt I could survive quite a while in there. It was a public holiday so I was assessing my options!
And then?
Haha!! Cliffhanger!!
Hmm the term cliffhanger in this particularly context…ugh.
There are easier ways to get rid of unwanted guests than the old stuck-in-the-toilet-don't-know-when-i'll-get-out-you-better-go-home trick.
locked my self out on saturday night for a second level unit next to the visitors park . Locksmith wanted $300. Parked car next to balcony and climbed up .luckily i did not locked the balcony doors. now i leave spare key at my friends place few blocks away.
Has happened to me twice. Both times I had my keys but a faulty key fob wouldn't open the security door. Real Estate Agent and Owner both not answering multiple phone calls, called a few locksmiths and none of them would help.
The first time I slept in my car and waited until morning, the second time I buzzed a neighbor to let me in.
Wife locked her keys in house, used my keys to get in, somehow screwed it up again and ended up with both sets locked inside.
House is raised and thankfully my tools are underneath. Lucky for us 1x door has external hinges. Pins did not want to play nice so I ground the whole thing off.
Quick trip to bunnings for a new hinge set at about $15.
Happened to one of my mates. Real estate agent charged $250 to come and unlock the door.
No matter what steps you do from above, remember to b**ch slap yourself 3 times and repeat "That was a stupid mistake".
point 3. sounds like a normal rate…300+ mark has not been unheard of
Happened to me before, live on the 12th floor so ladder was definitely not an option. Lucky my building manager had sent out an emergency contact list which has a preferred locksmith. Locksmith had access to the security swipe in the main door, security swipe to go up the lift, and was able to pick the lock. Cost about $200 during the day time so it wasn't too bad, lesson learned.
Couldn't you just go to real estate and get spare key?