Lake Balboa Locksmith, Just Around the Corner
Lake Balboa is only a few minutes from the middle of the Valley, and most homes here are single-story ranch houses that have changed hands a few times. Usually that means a set of keys that are older than the owners.
Working in Lake Balboa
The name comes from the lake in the Sepulveda Basin, with its paddle boats, cherry trees and weekend crowds. North of Victory Boulevard the neighborhood is mostly flat, quiet streets of 1950s ranch homes with deep lots, block walls, detached garages and side gates. Balboa Boulevard and White Oak Avenue carry the traffic, and Van Nuys Airport sits along the east side. Many houses have been in one family for decades, while others have recently changed hands. The houses are not complicated, but they have plenty of outside doors, and someone always ends up with a key that fits nothing.
The locks we meet here
Original 1950s houses often still have knob locks on the side and back doors, sometimes with a deadbolt added later that takes a different key. Detached garages and gates each picked up their own padlock or keyed lever over the years. Our usual job here is to get all of that working on one key, rekeying what is sound and replacing what is worn. Families who inherit a house often find a back door with no working key at all, which we can rekey from scratch. Older cars are common in the driveways too, and many still use a plain metal key we can cut on site.
How fast we get there
Lake Balboa is about 2.6 miles from Van Nuys in a straight line, so we are usually there in 20–35 minutes. Text (657) 478-8248 your cross streets and a photo of each lock you want looked at. If it is the car, send the year, make and model.
What people in Lake Balboa call us for
Common questions
We inherited my parents' house and nobody has a key to the back door. Can that be fixed?
Yes. We open the door without damage whenever the lock allows, then rekey the lock so it has a working key again. While we are there it makes sense to rekey the rest of the house too, since nobody knows how many copies went out over the years.
We are selling our house. What should we do about the locks while it is on the market?
Make sure every outside door works with one key, so your agent is not juggling a ring of them at showings. After closing, the new owners should rekey, and we are happy to do that for them too.
Can you cut a key for an older car that has no chip?
Yes. A lot of older cars and trucks use a plain metal key, and we can cut one on site from the lock or the vehicle's key code. Text the year, make and model, and we will tell you whether yours needs programming or only cutting.