Replace 97 year old door hardware in rental?

Question

We are currently renovating a 1922 all-brick craftsman, the house still has all the original interior doors, and hardware.  We will BRRRR this property, and while we love the look of the original hardware, we are concerned about the functionality of it for our tenants(we will be going sec 8 if that has any bearing).  If you've been in this situation, what did you decide, for what reasons, and based on what you learned, would you change your decision?

Thomas S. · Answer

You are renovating for a S8 tenant. Seriously. You must really enjoy renovate if you want to do it after every tenant turn over.

What ever you choose go cheep and easy to replace since they will likely destroy what ever you use. Quality material is a major mistake with S8/C class properties.

Nathan Gesner · Answer

For a home to occupy I would do what I could to keep the original hardware. For a rental I would replace it with something fully functional and cheap/easy to repair or replace.

Ray Harrell · Answer

The problem with those old handles is the screws can become loose and the knob pulls off of the shaft. Funny when you're trying to make it to the bathroom, but life threatening in an emergency! Those old doors have different dimensions than modern doors, so replacing them with $35 hollow core doors may be challenging. I had some of those old knobs and I simply remove them with the metal place and drilled holes for a modern knob set. May not look the best, but it's rental property. If you are concerned about looks, strip the varnish off the door, sand, and re-stain or paint it.

Tim Johnson · Answer

You can buy parts for old locksets, google mortise lock parts, you can buy them on Amazon.  As a contractor I love the old locks, they need some love sometimes but its worth it.  But the parts can get pricey!!!

Austin Pena · Answer

Oh man, same problem. I’ve fixed door handles 6 times now. You’ll probably have to have a skilled handy man mill a door and cut for new hardware. It’s a bitch.

Deren Huang · Answer

If it is in a transitional neighborhood, I would replace all the hardware and keep the originals in storage. But like some people said, it is a paint to try to match the doors up!

If you ever decide to sell and the craftsman style is what the people want, you have that stuff in storage to keep.

Chris C. · Answer

@Derek Sperzel

Door hardware is relatively cheap (you can buy it at Walmart and just install yourself since you're doing BRRR)

Richard Weinberg · Answer

@Derek Sperzel

Richard Weinberg · Answer

@Derek Sperzel

Is that the spindle like hard ware for inside doors?

I recently found replacements at local hardware stores and Home Depot for spindles and glass look handles.

Yvonne H. · Answer

@Derek Sperzel are they rim locks or mortise locks? I would love to see a picture. Also this paint is going to be your friend:

Replace 97 year old door hardware in rental?

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