Duplicate Medeco key

reason is BUILDING SECURITY..

you want ANYONE roaming around inside that is NOT authorized???

this way they KNOW who has and SHOULD HAVE a key..

--Shiva--

If the landlord did not warn you of a key deposit when you signed up, the landlord should pay this deposit.

Since it's just a deposit, I would not worry about it. You get it back when you move out. As others will tell you, the high deposit is simply intended to help make sure people treat the keys like gold. It's a hassle for the condo owner to get them replaced too.

The keys are supposed to be restricted, so you will have a hard time getting duplicates made.

Any other deposit has to be refunded in a certain period (since you are in California), so you might ask how soon you get that $100 back.

Daniel

Any locksmith who makes a Medeco key for you or others in similar circumstances will not be making Medeco key for too much longer when the owners of the locks start complaining to Medeco.

Such a locksmith would be open to being sued for a cost of re-keying for each lock compromised and that could cost a fortune for masterkeyed locks or large suites of keyed alike locks.

"pay the deposit". It's my guess that the deposit is held in a bank account, so it would be taking money out of one pocket to put in the other pocket.

Aren't deposits usually returned when the item (key, in this case) is turned in?

Medeco has some restricted keyblanks, and patent restricted systems. I suspect you'll get a "NO" answer everywhere.

It's a deposit. It will be returned to you with bank interest when you move out. Hand it over and don't worry about it; it's no worse than promising to keep $100 in you own bank account.

This is pure contract law. If you rent an apartment, you expect to be told up front of rent and the need to pay various deposits and bonds. After you sign, you expect to receive the necessary keys without further payments or deposits. What happens between the landlord and the BC concerning key deposits is of no concern to the tenant, unless the tenant is told before signing up.

Dont feel alone, I have a Bilock system at my Condu unit which I own and my Home Owner Ass. wants to charge $100.00 if you need a replacement key.

What do you mean? Can I get a duplicate? Like this place is a prison. If I go somewhere my girlfriend can't go to the store and has to sit in the condo until I return. When the lease is over, I'm gone. This system sucks. If you can duplicate it please write me ; dghyui AT yahoo DOT com.

Thanks.

And probably end up in a condo where the main entrance lock is old and worn with countless keys floating around (and perhaps opened with a nailfile etc) and a higher level of unauthorised 'visitors' wandering around and a lesser sense of security.

Residents get upset, bellyache to the Manager who fits a brand spanking new Medeco, Bi-Lock, Mul-T-Lok etc, issues one key per apartment and wants a $150 deposit for extra keys. Deja vu?

You've now learned another question to ask before you sign the lease.

I understand your surprise and annoyance -- I rejected one lease (and paid a penalty for backing out of it) because it had a few provisions that I considered just plain annoying -- but remember: All that's being asked is a _deposit_. The actual long-term cost to you is zero if you don't do something stupid like losing the key.

Either check out the additional key and put up the deposit, or don't and live with one key. That's your options. Don't expect us to violate your condo's security policies and Medeco's contracts.

If you have a girlfriend that's not worth a $100 deposit, maybe the condo is not the problem.

Humor intended, sort of. Really, you have an avenue for getting a key, all you want is a cheaper one.

Daniel

He doesn't even want _cheaper_, since with a deposit he gets his money back eventually (assuming he trusts the girlfriend to return the key to him).

Which suggests his real concern is that there not be a record of the duplicate key, which raises all the obvious flags.

I've been trying to give him the benefit of the doubt, but it's getting harder.

mmmm, you mean that he is probably happy to pay $100 for someone to make a key, so the key in question does not appear on the condo's key register.

This brings up another question: If he only has the one key (vide his comments about girlfriend), how is he planning to deal with mailing the key off to someone for duplication?

I think credibility just collapsed. It ain't his key, or he's a reporter or a Medeco rep trying to catch one of us violating the rules.

It is your own fault when you sign a contract that says it is forbidden to change the lock.

The very first thing I do when moving to a new place is changing the lock. Even easier here in germany as there are always euro profile cylinders used.

regards - Ralph

I even spent several hundreds of $$ to make life easier for my wife and me, by setting up a MK system, covering the door, the bikes and the storage room.

regards - Ralph

Sorry, I meant the lock on the street entrance shared by all users.

Agreed, individual apartment owners should be allowed to change locks possibly with the requirement that the manager be given a key. These locks should never be masterkeyed.