credit Flickr user Svadilfari

I wish I could do a study on the average number of copies of a New Yorker’s key are floating around, if they don’t change the locks when they move into a new place. It would be ridiculously shocking.

Who has your key? Of course, several people from the management company, the landlord(s), and supers. NYC apartments have hugely high turnover, and the locks probably haven’t been changed for several move-in and move-outs. Anyone living there previously could have given a copy of their keys to friends, significant others, or anyone.

So you change your locks. But also, if you’re in a position where you have to or want to give out copies (such as a doorman building, and any rental property management company will require that they have a copy) consider purchasing a lock that has keys that require authorization for duplicating.

People are rightly wary of keys with “do not duplicate” stamped on them. Do locksmiths who cut keys really care about that?

Generally speaking, yes. For truly high security lock keys, even you may even have to look pretty hard to find a locksmith that CAN copy your own key. Here’s some information from Mul-T-Lock, whose keys come with authorization cards that you must present to have a copy made.

I’m not going to say that the locksmithing industry isn’t full of unsavory characters who will do a lot for a buck, but it isn’t that easy. If keys are difficult to copy, the chances of you losing control of how many copies there are drop off a lot. And with Yelp reviews, Angie’s List, and the internet in general, any locksmith knows that shady stuff gets around fast and kills business. Plus, manufacturers like Medeco and Mul-T-Lock are only going to stay in business as long as they can prove reliability, which means they take measures to ensure that high security keys cannot be duplicated.

We’re always happy to give you all the details on different types of locks and what options there are for your situation. Give us a call anytime, and stay safe!

Sincerely,
Jay

The bad news is, if you have a “standard” lock, it’s not too easy for anyone who knows what they’re doing to get past it. The point of the standard lock is to make it more difficult to get inside without an exact copy of the key. Unfortunately, with just a standard lock, you’re really not making it that much more challenging to get inside. A potential intruder who knows what he’s doing could “pick” or “bump” your lock relatively quickly and quietly, without making a ton of noise or drawing attention to himself.

In the vast majority of New York apartments, the key they hand you when you move into an apartment with a standard lock is the same key, or a copy of the same key, that several residents before you had — not to mention anyone else they gave a copy to.

Changing the cylinder in your standard lock means you’ll have a new key that opens it. This will prevent some idiot who has the old key from just walking in. But that’s pretty much all you get; others can still pick it really easily.

You know what lock picking is, and maybe even tried it once or twice when you were locked out. But what’s a bump key? That’s when some doofus creates a standard key for standard locks that can be inserted, and when the lock is bumped lightly or even vibrated with a tool, someone with a little skill can jostle the lock mechanism just right so that they can open the door with the bump key. Yep, scary (and annoying) stuff. Here’s a kinda cheesy but true news video about easy it is to bump a lock.

A bump or pick resistant lock makes it much, much more difficult to get in without the real key. Someone who wanted to break in would typically have to destroy or drill the lock to do it. In other words, it’s hard to do without making a scene that someone will notice.

If a crook is looking for a target, and your door has a bump/pick resistant lock on it, he’s going to pass your door over for one that’s easier and quieter.

Please feel free to give me a call about what you get from different locks. The Mul-T-Lock MT5 with patented key control is great new high security lock we’re offering. Find more of Lockbusters residential lock offerings on the website, and if you’re looking for something different, we’ll get it for you. On any service visit, Lockbusters technicians can tell you what your apartment’s vulnerabilities are and recommend how to address them. We’ve seen it all, and I promise we will always give you our honest, professional opinion, and never sell you anything that you don’t need.

Thank you sincerely for business, and for your recommendations to friends and family!

Sincerely,
Jay

Walk alone with confidence

The city’s new campaign is about a different kind of safety in the home than what Lockbusters offers. It’s about combating domestic violence, a danger that comes from inside your door. The idea is that if you know someone being pushed around, report it instead of looking the other way. Info on the NYC Domestic Violence hotline here.

I’ve noticed that Lockbusters’ customers looking to change locks or add deadbolts tend to skew female. Your guess as to why is as good as mine, but it may be that women are generally more concerned about their safety or feel more vulnerable. (Or maybe they’re just smarter.)

Whatever the case may be, all of us, and especially women, should have some training in self-defense against violence inside and outside the home. Fun fact about me: I train in Jiu jitsu at CrossFit 718. There are tons of resources in the city for those looking to learn how to defend themselves. Even if you think of yourself as small or weak, you can learn the skills you need to put off a potential attacker.

There’s a great New York nonprofit called Hollaback! whose mission is to end street harassment. They map incidents, conduct workshops, and work to get politicians involved. Read their summary of self-defense resources in New York.

You can find classes that teach you how to kill the “freeze response” some people feel when their adrenaline spikes, practice against a padded male “attacker” (good for those with some pent-up aggression to work out!), and find other approaches that involve cardio and strength training. I highly recommend the Renzo Gracie Academy near Penn Station, and they offer a free intro class.

Here are some other places offering workshops and courses that have great Yelp reviews:
Female Awareness Self Defense Course
Anderson’s Martial Arts Academy in Tribeca
Prepare in Chelsea
Krav Maga Academy, Flatiron (there are lots of places to learn Krav Maga in the city)

Stay safe, and please take care of yourself!

Best,
Jay Sofer
Lockbusters owner

Yup, that's the whole thing

Every time a friend or acquaintance decides to move to New York, they say, “Jay! How do I get an awesome place I can afford?” Most of the time I have to smack their dreams of a sunny, artsy Village studio out of midair and make sure they understand that the space they’re getting here is usually anything but my definition of “space.”

However, it doesn’t have to be a nightmare. Here’s the rundown I give newcomers on how to endure the process. Share with your wannabe New Yorker friends to save yourself the breath. And if you’re getting ready to find a new apartment here, maybe you can use the refresher. (For you non-readers: try the how to rent in NYC video at Miron Properties, an honest company I recommend that can help you rent or buy.)

First lesson:

There are a bunch of different types of apartments: corporate managed buildings, usually the newer high rises, where the entire viewing and application and renting process takes place internally. Privately owned apartments; you’ll deal directly with the owner or with an agent of the owner’s management company. You can take on a broker to show you a bunch of apartments that are supposed to match your specs and budget. Typically you have to pay a broker a fee (a percentage or one month’s rent), while a management company’s agent will get commission off renting to you without you paying them a fee directly.

Got it? Next point, there isn’t necessarily one best way of doing it. Most people prefer to avoid the fee, while others would rather have the broker do the legwork for them and cough it up. And this is important: most brokers and agents aren’t out to screw you. (I said most, not all.) They may be intimidating and fast talking and literally holding the keys to your future, but they’re not always jerks — they are, however, ALWAYS in a rush. Be nice, and maybe they’ll hook you up or make things easier for you.

Once you find the right place, you have to snatch it up. There’s no time to think, otherwise it’s gone. Fortunately, you’ll have done all your thinking already and know exactly what you want:

1.) You’ve made a list of questions to ask the landlord/agent/broker/management company, and got them all answered before seeing the apartments. Some agents will prefer you text them to calling, but try to get them on the phone before meeting them and get all your questions answered at once.

2.) You’ve studied the neighborhoods and picked one or two that’s right for you. Read people’s “reviews” of different nabes on www.nabewise.com to get some authentic accounts of what’s what.

3.) You’ve been studying the ads for months, and have a pretty good idea of what your budget is going to get you.

4.) You’ve gathered all the information you need to pass the application; here’s a good list.

5.) You’ve read up on what the rental market’s like right now in New York. (The news for right now actually isn’t very good.)

Having your questions answers, your expectations reality-sized, and your neighborhood and market research done will give you the much-needed confidence required to…

Negotiate!

In my experience, most if not all asking prices on apartments can be negotiated at least a little bit. You can maybe talk down the broker’s fee or get them to knock an amount like $25 – $100 off rent per month. If you’re the one standing there in front of them, with all the information you need to pass the application in your hand, it’s likely that they’ll come down a little to seal the deal with rather than spend more time, which is money, showing the apartment to other people.

Other tips to reduce shock:

Don’t be surprised if your neighborhood is not the same in a couple years or even one year after moving into it. New York City is changing fast. Sadly, older mom-and-pop places are frequently replaced with newer, generic ones, and “cool” neighborhoods get more and more crowded on weekends. On the plus side, NYC appears to be getting safer.

You will probably need to make 40x the monthly rent as your annual salary to get the apartment – and be able to prove it. Credit also matters. Can’t vouch for it, but apparently there are companies that will “co-sign” or act as guarantor and help you get a place, for a fee, when mom and dad say no. One example: http://www.insurent.com/.

You can start researching months in advance, but with rare exception you’re not going to find anything more than six weeks out from your moving date. In most cases, much closer, and there are even some great deals to be had in the last two weeks before move-in (but no guarantees).

Other resources:

This four-year-old New York Times article about finding an apartment proves that the only things changing are neighborhoods and price.

www.howtorentinnyc.com/ has solid advice.

Craigslist.org alternatives for no-fee rental searches: http://www.nybits.com/ and http://www.urbanedgeny.com/. Craigslist is probably still the most comprehensive but also most junk-clogged.

For a good laugh, try the NYC Affordable Housing Resource Center apartment hunting tips, which are kind of worthless. They recommend that “if you’re looking for an apartment, make sure everyone you know knows that you’re looking” and also to “walk around.” Good luck with that!

Time Out’s How to Find a Cheap Apartment in NYC is almost inspirational yet has some hard knock life sensibility. E.g., forgo sensory comfort: get a place that faces something ugly or is in a loud construction area for a discount.

When all else fails, don’t forget Craigslist room shares, where people in multi-bedroom apartments are looking to rent out a bedroom. Well, make sure it’s a real room. With a door. Even if you end up with a nuthead, there is no better way to wind up with awesome stories about living in New York when you had an insane roommate.

And lastly, what’s the first thing to do once you get a new place? Call your locksmith and change the locks, add a deadbolt or security gate… make it safe! Here’s why.

Hmm, doesn’t this look comfy

• Spinlister is a new web startup that lets you affordably rent all kinds of bikes for all kinds of time periods in NYC (from the hour to the month).

• Bicycle been tucked away? Here’s how to spring-ify your bike.

• From the department of staying alive: Eight important safety tips for bicyclists new and old.

• Biking in NYC is actually kinda wicked bad for your lungs — cause all that heavy breathing you’re doing in the great city outdoors causes you to draw in more pollutants. Hmm. Maybe compromise by not smoking? I’m looking at you, hipsters.

• Did you know that bike theft is passively somewhat endorsed in New York City? This dude consistently stages “stealing” his own bicycle — using crowbars and even the sidewalk in front of a police station — just to check how peeps would react. Turns out, the general public went about its merry way.

• The police department is now responsible for tracking all bike accidents, something they didn’t do before. Whether NYPD will pay more attention to it than to the bike thieves is tbd.

• DOT is installing new bike racks all over town, for example this one in East Village. Request a bike rack installed where you like to park here.

• Pimp out your dome-piece. These hands-free helmet walkie-talkies keep you in touch with your co-bikers (number of minutes it would take one of my friends to burp as loud as possible into it: probably two). Have a dorky helmet? Here are some cool ones. Your best bet for a wide selection of nifty-looking helmets in Manhattan is probably Adeline Adeline.

• Last but not least, should you accidentally find yourself in a bike lockout situation, give us a call — we take care of those kinds of locks quickly and easily, too!

recommended by Lockbusters NYC

Regardless of what you use your fire escape for – herb garden, mini terrace, cigarette breaks, or a convenient place to stash a forbidden lover when your spouse comes home early (kidding!) – it is so, so important that it isn’t penetrable. G-d forbid you are ever affected by the type of scum that will break his way into your space, your own home. But rather than take the risk of letting that happen, Lockbusters strongly recommends installing fire escape gates over windows easily accessed by fire escapes.

Easy to exit via an indoor, keyless latch, a quality fire escape isn’t penetrable from the outside without the use of tremendous force that would deter a wannabe thief from attempting the crime. We encourage window gate installation on all easily accessible fire escape windows, but it’s especially important for windows that face the backs of buildings, dark alleyways, or are obscured.

Recommended by Jay Sofer of Lockbusters

Of course, having bars on your window isn’t exactly the latest craze in home decor. Being “behind bars” can make you feel like you live in a “bad” neighborhood and be gloomy looking. Fortunately, rather than having thick vertical bars, there are some nice looking designs available instead! Check out this “sunburst” style fire escape gate, and consider adding a little flair to your home security. :)

NYC Super Giving you the Stink Eye

In NYC, it seems like we’d rather change apartments than have to transfer trains. It’s easy to get lazy and put off changing your locks in a new place, but for many New York City apartments, there are about a millions reasons you’ll want to get this taken care of fast.

If you just moved and are living alone, there’s all the more reason to refresh your NYC apartment door locks. And if you’ve got a new roommate, sometimes there’s good cause to get a privacy lock for your bedroom door.

The following reasons to change your locks ASAP are all cases we’ve seen — some more times than we can count!

1. Your super tried to give you a real nice hug the other day.
2. Your ex is crazy. You always knew that, but love makes you do silly things — like give them your keys right before breaking up.
3. Because your building was built in 1890 and still has the original locks. You often get locked out even when you have your keys.
4. Cause last Saturday you woke up and there was a strange dude sleeping on the couch. When you screamed and woke him up, he told you that he forgot he didn’t live here anymore.
5. Because then you realize eight different people have lived in your apartment in the past two years, and you just know they all still have keys.
6. For pet preservation: your roommate got mad and held your cat hostage for two days. (Yes even this one’s true.)
7. Because you just noticed that there seems to be an awful lot of traffic in and out of the apartment next door.
8. You got a roommate off of Craigslist and she turned out to be a total klepto. You can keep the underwear you “borrowed,” thanks.

If any of these ring a bit too true for you… give us a call!

Here are just a few of my favorite spots:

Reciprocal NYC Skate shop – awesome people, cool shop, and you can play pinball til late.

Tuck Shop – there’s one near 1st & 1st and another on St. Mark’s near Ave. A. A meat pie from the Tuck Shop is really the perfect food for a super busy day when you’re wrecked for time but starving!

Whiskey Ward – at Essex & Rivington. A real down to earth spot with peanuts on the bar, good bartenders, and so many amazing whiskeys it’s almost impossible not to overdo it. I recommend Redbreast Irish Whiskey.

The Meatball Shop – yes, I know everyone loves the Meatball Shop! But if you pass by the place at a time when there doesn’t happen to be a three-hour wait for a table, go. The meatballs are of course incredible, but the ice cream sandwiches are even better.

Max – classic Italian food at Ave. B & E 4th St. Such an endearing restaurant that when you take someone here, they start to think you’re endearing too. (AKA, date spot.)

There are dozens of E. Village places I love, and these are just a few. What are yours?

Some people get excited over round-the-world trips, mega fancy dinners at the city’s most expensive spots, or meeting rockstar celebrities. I’m that psyched that Lockbusters just hit 100 Yelp reviews. So psyched, that when I found out I let out a scream and fist-pumped in the middle of Hell’s Kitchen.

As of today, March 22, 2012, we have 100 reviews: 98 are five star and 2 four star. The Lockbusters team has worked hard to earn all those stars, recommendations, and consistently positive feedback. We’re so grateful for everyone who took the time to post or to mention us to a friend!

We appreciate and read every review we receive. I’ve said it before, including one time on stage with Mayor Bloomberg: Yelp put me on the MAP!

To celebrate the company earning 100 unanimously positive reviews, here are some of my favorites reviews over the past few years (but really, I LOVE them all).

“…So that, in summary, is why I’m repeating Lockbusters’ number to myself until I can dial it in a coma.
But you know what? Even if I do end up with another locksmith next time, I’m so empowered now since Jay educated me – instead of trying to intimidate and confuse – that I won’t get completely screwed over ever again. How heartwarming isn’t THAT?
I could have cried when they left.” Zuzu Z., 12/21/2009

This is my favorite part of the job – educating and empowering you (not making you cry).

“Don’t pay any attention to any of these reviews. They are all glowing, and none of them quite captures just how amazing the service was from this locksmith. Jay is the f’ing man. I live in Long Island City, he drove to me within 30 minutes of calling at 11pm on a Wednesday night. It took him 7 minutes flat to get my bathroom door open.” Jay R., 2/24/10

When another dude named Jay I just met gives me public kudos for being “the f’ing man,” I feel like I’ve done something right.

“Anywho, gentlemen comes, professional looking, not scary and extremely friendly.” Brian W., 5/2/11

Gentlemen? Professional looking? Not scary? I must have been having a good hair day.

“…not none of us minded one bit that a stranger had crashed our late-night house party and was making loud mechanical noises in the entranceway. One friend kept marveling at his muscular arms and even my lesbian friend was still swooning over him into the next day.” Susan T., 10/11/10

Yup. That was a fun night.

“If you are not chronically absent-minded like I am, I would highly recommend that you deliberately lock yourself out and dial Lockbusters for help, in order to experience what I am talking about.” Srini V., 11/30/11

What can I say. My mother taught me manners.

Thanks, Yelpers, and all of our supporters – you have my utmost gratitude!

Sincerely,
Jay Sofer, Owner

East Village NYC

A question Lockbusters is asked a lot: Are we an East Village locksmith or a mobile locksmithing service?

The answer is, both! We’re currently a mobile operation serving neighborhoods in Manhattan, Brooklyn, and Queens, and we make every effort to get to where you are as quickly as possible.

We’re strongly associated with the East Village because that’s where I, the owner of Lockbusters, got my start with this growing business. I live in Park Slope now, but in some ways my heart will always be in the East Village!

Like so many young people who arrive in the East Village or the Lower East Side with a suitcase and a cruddy mattress, it wasn’t easy at first. There was a time when I shared a tiny, dirty little studio on E 9th St. with two other dudes. Let’s just say that there weren’t too many secrets among us on a Saturday night, and that I woke up to some interesting scenes more than once.

East Village New York City

To me, the East Village represents beginnings. I wanted to start my own business — as much out of personal fulfillment as straight up need — and here was where the hard work began. I know lots of others who scraped by, worked hard (and partied hard) in the East Village to get to the new and better places they are today.

As an affordable service, it was then and still is today my pleasure to ensure that when money’s tight, a middle of the night lockout or changing the locks isn’t one more place where East Village dwellers have to worry about getting ripped off. Save your money for the good times!

Because let’s not forget that the East Village and the Lower East Side are, well, just really exciting neighborhoods. With more bars, ethnic restaurants, underground hangouts, and interesting young people on ANY night of the week than anywhere else I know, it’s the perfect backdrop for starting out.

As always, thanks to everyone for their support, back in the beginning and today!

Sincerely,
Jay
Your East Village locksmith (and mobile, too!)