I recently heard that there is a new requirement that I change the locks on the apartment door every time a tenant moves out.  Can I charge incoming tenants for this expense, or have them sign a waiver saying that they accept the unchanged locks in lieu of a fee?  

In 2007, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors passed a law requiring landlords to change certain locks when a tenant vacates.  You should not charge incoming tenants for this expense, and you also cannot present a waiver to them that excuses your obligations under this statute.  

The San Francisco Administrative Code’s section on residential security deposits (Chapter 49) now states that when a unit is permanently vacated by all tenants, the owner must replace or re-key all door locks that are exclusive to that unit.  If two or more locks on any one door are opened by different keys, the landlord is only obligated to re-key/replace one of the locks.  The re-key requirement does not apply to any door locks that are provided for use to two or more units.  In other words, if a lock is for access to a common area, like the building’s roof deck, garage port, or front lobby, it need not be re-keyed or replaced.  Thus, this law only applies to the unit itself, or areas in the building under the exclusive control of a single unit such as one tenant’s storage locker or private garage.  

 Like most laws affecting residential rental housing, the landlord and tenant cannot enter into an agreement to waive the owner’s compliance.  A waiver would undermine public policy, as this legislation was passed because of safety and security concerns.  Specifically, the Board of Supervisors determined that re-keying or replacing entrance door locks on any vacated unit would help prevent crime.  Even before passage of this ordinance, the SFAA and other industry leaders always advised changing the door locks when a new tenancy began.  To this end, owners should always be taking measures to ensure that all residents in their buildings are safe from preventable dangers.  As all of us know, keys oftentimes are lost, stolen, or given to someone and not returned, and burglars are well aware of the human tendency of forgetting to undertake appropriate safety precautions.  

Re-keying is part of rehabilitating and upgrading a unit before you re-rent it. Since incoming tenants are not charged for the new carpet and the fresh paint, they should also not bear the costs of the lock change.  As landlords in California are free to set rent at the inception of a tenancy, there is no reason to pass the lock cost along to the incoming occupant.  Moreover, you cannot deduct this expense from the departing tenant’s security deposit.  Rather, the legislation only mandates what good property owners and managers have been doing for years:  A new tenancy means a new lock which in the end makes for a safer home.  

DW