Tenant changed the locks, but sent us the keys?

[Vida Dillard]

A tenant recently locked himself out of his apartment (for the 2nd time).  He wanted to avoid paying the fee for us to drive out to his apartment and let him in, so he changed the locks and mailed us the new keys.  Its very clearly written in the lease that the tenant cannot change the locks without written permission from the Landlord.  We don't want to evict him, but not sure how to react.  I sent him a formal notice that he had broken his lease.  

I now need to make sure the keys he sent me are really for his apartment, and track down the maintenance guy to give him a new set.  

I'm a pretty new property manager/owner, and just wondering if anyone has had a similar situation and how you handled it.  

thanks,

Vida

[Michele Fischer]

How much do you charge for replacement keys?  We charge $5, which doesn't begin to cover our costs and inconvenience, but that seemed standard in other agreements I saw.

Unless your fee is high, they spent more rekeying the place than your fee.  Make it clear that they need to know their lease, what they agreed to abide by, but also focus on a good relationship with them where they feel comfortable contacting you.

Otherwise make an appointment for a maintenance inspection, and make sure the keys you have fit all doors and look for anything else suspicious in addition to any current or upcoming maintenance needs.