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 Highwood, IL
Highwood rekey work happens in a very specific kind of building: the two- and three-flat built before 1950, with original mortise locksets and heavy wood doors that have swollen and shifted through decades of Lake County winters. Most calls we get in 60040 involve rekeying at lease turnover, rekeying after a roommate leaves, or rekeying a vintage storefront on Green Bay Road. Valor Locksmith has served Highwood since 2013. Call (877) 870-5926 when you need a rekey done right the first time.
Why Highwood Homes Are Different
Highwood is a compact city of under one square mile, and because it is nearly fully built out, you will not find acres of new-construction homes with builder-grade hardware. What you will find is a dense stock of two- and three-flat rentals, older detached homes on small lots, and downtown storefronts set into century-old brick and masonry buildings. That changes the lock work. Original mortise locksets are standard in much of the housing here, which means rekeying is often a job for a locksmith who still works with skeleton-key entry doors and rim cylinders, not just someone swapping a Kwikset knob.
The climate adds another layer. Lake Michigan sits a couple of blocks east, which softens the deepest cold but does not stop freeze-thaw cycles from doing their work. Deadbolts ice up in February. Wood doors swell in spring. Road salt from winter streets corrodes exterior hardware, especially on the older iron and brass sets you still find on Highwood porches. A simple rekey can turn into a real repair job if the cylinder is seized or the latch is rusted in place, and that is exactly the kind of call we are used to handling here.
Because such a large share of 60040 is multifamily rental, the rhythm of lock work in Highwood runs on lease cycles. Landlords rekey between tenants. Renters rekey the day they move in, and call the same week the lease turns over. The downtown restaurant and bar district along Green Bay Road adds another pattern entirely: late-night foot traffic, heavy wood-and-glass storefront doors, and commercial panic hardware that takes a beating season after season.
Styles & brands we work with
Our Main Highwood Services
Highwood homeowners and renters call us most often for two things: rekeying the locks on a new or newly vacant unit, and car or emergency lockouts that need someone who actually answers the phone. Here is how those two core services work.
Car Key Replacement in Highwood
Losing the only key to a car parked on a Highwood residential street is a particular kind of problem, because there is no dealer nearby and no easy way to tow a vehicle off a tight block of two-flats. We handle car key replacement on-site, cutting and programming transponder keys and fobs for most major makes. Whether you lost the key, broke it in the ignition, or need a spare before you sell the car, one call covers it. Car Key Replacement in Highwood
Emergency Locksmith in Highwood
A frozen deadbolt on a January night or a snapped key in a storefront door on Green Bay Road does not wait for business hours. Our emergency locksmith response is built for Highwood’s specific situations: renters locked out of a third-floor flat, restaurant owners who cannot open the front door before dinner service, homeowners with a garage side door that will not budge. We arrive with the tools for both consumer and commercial hardware, and we do not treat an emergency call as an excuse to oversell. Emergency Locksmith in Highwood
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 Highwood
In Highwood, rekeying is often the smartest security move a landlord, renter, or new homeowner can make. Because so much of the housing stock is pre-1950 multifamily with decades of prior tenants, there is simply no way to know how many copies of an old key are still floating around. Rather than replace a working mortise lockset, a rekey changes the internal pins so the old keys stop working and a new key takes over. It costs a fraction of full hardware replacement and keeps the original door hardware intact, which matters when you are dealing with vintage locksets that builders no longer make. For a full breakdown of the service, see Rekey Locks.
Lock Rekey
Signs you need it
You just moved into a Highwood rental or bought an older home and you cannot account for every key that previous occupants may still hold.
What it costs in Highwood
Lock rekeying in Highwood typically costs $30 – $95 per cylinder, depending on whether the lock is a standard pinned cylinder or an older mortise cylinder that takes more bench time.
How we do it
We remove the cylinder, replace the pins to match a new key, reassemble the lock, and test it in place so your old keys are dead and the new key turns smooth.
Rekey Door Lock
Signs you need it
Your front door lock still works fine mechanically, but a roommate, ex-partner, or former contractor has a copy of the key you would rather not trust.
What it costs in Highwood
Rekeying a single door lock in Highwood typically runs $60 – $130, which covers the service call, cylinder repinning, and two new keys.
How we do it
We repin the existing cylinder on-site, cut new keys to the new pattern, and hand you back full control of your entry door without replacing any hardware.
Keyed Alike
Signs you need it
You carry a separate key for the front door, back door, and garage door in your Highwood two-flat and want one key to open all of them.
What it costs in Highwood
Keying multiple locks alike in Highwood typically costs $90 – $220 depending on how many cylinders we have to repin, with three or four locks being the most common request.
How we do it
We repin each cylinder to a shared key profile, then cut and test the new keys in every lock so one key works across your whole property.
What Rekey Locks Costs in Highwood
| Item | Typical range in Highwood |
|---|---|
| Rekey per cylinder | $30 – $95 |
| Rekey single door lock | $60 – $130 |
| Keyed alike (3 – 4 locks) | $90 – $220 |
How much does it cost to rekey locks in Highwood?
Most Highwood rekey jobs land between $60 and $220, depending on how many cylinders are involved and whether they are standard pin-and-tumbler or older mortise cylinders. The quote we give on the phone is the price on the invoice. Call (877) 870-5926 for an exact number.
Can you rekey a lock without replacing it?
Yes. Rekeying repins the existing cylinder so the old key no longer works. It is the standard approach on Highwood’s older mortise locksets, where replacement hardware is hard to find and usually unnecessary. Call (877) 870-5926 to confirm your lock can be rekeyed.
Brands We Service in Highwood
We carry cylinders, pins, and parts for Schlage, Kwikset, Sargent, and Abloy, among eight professional and consumer lock brands we are certified to work on. That means a Highwood landlord with a mix of Kwikset knobs on interior doors and Sargent mortise locks on entry doors gets one call and one tech. If you need a Medeco or Mul-T-Lock system serviced, see our brands.
Pricing for Locksmith in Highwood, IL
| Service | Typical range in Highwood |
|---|---|
| Rekey per cylinder | $30 – $95 |
| Rekey single door lock | $60 – $130 |
| Keyed alike (3 – 4 locks) | $90 – $220 |
| Car key replacement | $150 – $450 |
| Emergency lockout (residential) | $75 – $180 |
| Emergency lockout (commercial) | $95 – $250 |
| Lock change / deadbolt replacement | $90 – $220 |
What pushes the price up in Highwood is usually the hardware itself: an original mortise lockset from a 1920s two-flat takes more care than a modern Kwikset knob, and a frozen or corroded exterior cylinder on a Green Bay Road storefront can add bench time. Whatever the job, you get the full price on the phone before anyone is dispatched. That is the price on the invoice, no arrival surcharge.
Neighborhoods We Serve in Highwood
Highwood is small enough that we cover every street in 60040, from the downtown storefront district on Green Bay Road to the quiet residential blocks east toward Lake Michigan. Our service area includes all of the following:
- Downtown Highwood (Green Bay Road corridor)
- Fort Sheridan border area
- East Highwood near Sheridan Road
- North Highwood near the Highland Park line
- West Highwood near Waukegan Avenue
Response time across Highwood is consistently quick because of the city’s compact footprint. We are never more than a few minutes from any address in 60040.
Service Area – Cities Near Highwood
Beyond Highwood, we regularly work in the neighboring North Shore communities with similar housing stock. Highland Park, IL shares the older two-flat stock and downtown storefronts, and Lake Forest, IL brings older estate homes with a mix of vintage and updated hardware. Bannockburn, IL and Deerfield, IL round out the nearby coverage area, where rekeying and car key replacement are the most frequent calls. Call (877) 870-5926 and we will let you know our next available slot for your area.
Serving Highwood, IL — Our Local Coverage Area
We’re based in the Highwood 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 Highwood
Because Highwood is under one square mile, we can usually reach any address in 60040 quickly, and we keep our schedule structured so emergency calls from the city take priority during lockout situations. Call (877) 870-5926 for a current ETA and the dispatcher will confirm while you are on the phone.
Most Illinois leases require tenants to provide the landlord a copy of any new key, but rekeying is not usually prohibited. We can provide duplicate keys for your landlord at no extra charge beyond the key cutting. Call (877) 870-5926 if you need to confirm what to hand over.
Yes. Original mortise locksets are the standard hardware in much of Highwood’s pre-1950 housing stock, and we carry pins, cylinders, and parts for these systems, including older Sargent and rim cylinder setups. Call (877) 870-5926 with your lock type and we will confirm the parts are on the truck.
Call Valor Locksmith at (877) 870-5926 for a free estimate on any Highwood rekey, lockout, or car key job. We give you the full price before we dispatch, and the price we quote is the price you pay.
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 Highwood Customers Say
"Commercial job, panic bar and a master key system for a small office. Clean install and clear documentation of which key opens what."
— Roger Whitaker"Rekey was done properly. One of the keys he cut was slightly stiff in the back door and I had to call him to swap it, which he did without a fuss."
— Heather Walsh"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."
— Allison Parker