Building Access Upgrades Driven by Lockouts, Not Break-Ins

Building access upgrades in multifamily properties are driven by operational pain, not security threats. In NAA/KeyTrak's January 2025 research on multifamily access control, zero property managers cited security as a reason for adopting smart access technology. The actual drivers are lockouts, rekeying costs, and portfolio standardization.

That finding deserves a second read. The entire access control industry markets itself around safety. Yet when researchers asked the people who actually make purchasing decisions why they switched, security didn't register. The real motivators were lockouts, rekeying headaches, and the need to standardize access across a portfolio. This article examines what the data reveals, why the security framing persists, and how rethinking the business case changes the upgrade decision for property managers.

The Assumption Everyone Gets Wrong

Ask any building technology vendor why properties should upgrade access control, and you'll hear "security" within the first 30 seconds. Better locks. Fewer break-ins. Safer buildings. It's the default pitch, and it has been for decades.

The NAA/KeyTrak multifamily access control research published in January 2025 tells a different story. Surveying multifamily professionals across the country, the study found that the top motivators for smart access adoption were entirely operational: lockouts (33%), standardization across properties (26%), and eliminating rekeying costs (22%). Security did not appear as a factor.

KeyTrak's analysis of the same findings frames this as a fundamental industry shift. Properties aren't upgrading to prevent break-ins. They're upgrading because traditional key systems create constant, measurable friction in daily operations.

This distinction matters for one practical reason: it changes how managers should evaluate solutions, build budget proposals, and measure success. An access upgrade justified by security requires proving threat reduction. An upgrade justified by operations requires proving time and cost savings. The second case is far easier to quantify, and far easier to get approved.

What Actually Drives Building Access Upgrades

The NAA/KeyTrak data breaks down into three operational categories. Each represents a different type of daily burden on property management teams.

Lockouts: The Largest Single Driver

At 33%, lockout response is the most common reason properties move to smart access. The burden is straightforward: when a resident loses or forgets a key, someone on staff has to respond. For buildings without 24/7 on-site management, that means after-hours calls, emergency locksmith fees, or both.

The cost compounds quickly. Each lockout incident involves staff time for coordination, potential overtime charges, and locksmith fees that can range from $50 to $200 depending on the hour and location. Multiply that across dozens of units and the annual expense becomes a real line item, even before accounting for the resident frustration that drives turnover.

Smart access systems reduce lockout calls by giving residents backup entry methods (mobile credentials, PIN codes, or remote unlock) that don't depend on a physical key. Software-first solutions like Knockli take this further by handling access through existing intercom infrastructure, so residents can manage entry from their phone without any new hardware at the door. The lockout doesn't disappear. It simply stops requiring a human response.

Standardization Across Properties

The second driver, at 26%, reflects a pain point specific to portfolio managers. When a management company oversees 10, 20, or 50 buildings, each with its own key system, lock brand, and access protocol, operations fragment. Training new staff takes longer. Key inventories multiply. Vendor relationships sprawl.

Standardizing on a single access platform across a portfolio reduces this complexity. It enables centralized management, consistent policies, and simpler onboarding for both staff and residents. For regional operators expanding through acquisition, standardization is often the trigger that moves access upgrades from "someday" to "this quarter."

Rekeying Costs at Turnover

The third driver, at 22%, hits every property at every turnover. Traditional key-based systems require rekeying when residents move out. According to iLOQ's analysis of mechanical key system costs, the direct costs include cylinder replacement, key cutting, and labor for each affected lock. For a standard apartment with entry, mailbox, and common area keys, that's three or more cylinders per turnover.

At scale, rekeying becomes one of the most predictable and avoidable line items in a property's operating budget. Digital credentials eliminate it entirely: when a resident moves out, their access is revoked remotely. No locksmith visit. No new keys. No scheduling delay during the turnover window.

The Real Cost of Traditional Keys

These three drivers share a common root: the hidden operational cost of traditional key systems. While the keys themselves are inexpensive, the infrastructure around them is not.

Buildings.com's analysis of smart access in multifamily properties highlights how centralized access management reduces operational overhead by streamlining key tracking, eliminating physical key distribution, and cutting the administrative hours spent on access-related tasks.

Consider the full lifecycle of a traditional key system. A property manager orders keys for new residents, tracks master key distribution to staff and vendors, handles lost key reports, schedules rekeying at turnover, maintains key cabinets and sign-out logs, and fields after-hours lockout calls. Each task is minor in isolation. Collectively, they represent hours of staff time every week that could be redirected to higher-value work like resident relations, lease-ups, or property improvements.

For managers exploring how to reduce this burden without a major capital project, modernizing building access without hardware replacement is increasingly viable through software-first solutions that work with existing intercom and buzzer infrastructure.

The irony is that these costs rarely appear on a "security" line item. They're buried in maintenance budgets, overtime payroll, and vendor invoices. When access technology gets classified as security spending, the operational savings it actually delivers become invisible to the people approving budgets.

Why 76% of Buildings Haven't Switched Yet

If the operational case is so clear, why do most properties still rely on traditional keys?

The NAA/KeyTrak research found that 76% of multifamily properties still use traditional keys as their primary access method, even as smart lock adoption in the sector has doubled from 7% to 16% since 2022. That's meaningful progress, but it means three out of four buildings are still running on physical key systems.

Meanwhile, the intent to upgrade is high. According to Parks Associates, 72% of multifamily owners and operators plan access control upgrades in the next 12 months. The gap between intent and action suggests something beyond budget constraints is slowing adoption.

Three factors explain the stall.

Perceived capital cost. Many managers assume access upgrades require ripping out existing hardware and installing new panels, readers, and wiring. That assumption is increasingly outdated. The Security Industry Association notes that cloud-based and mobile credential solutions have dramatically lowered both deployment costs and implementation timelines compared to traditional access control hardware.

Disruption anxiety. Changing how every resident enters a building feels risky. Managers worry about elderly residents struggling with apps, maintenance windows for installation, and the logistical challenge of transitioning hundreds of units at once.

The "if it ain't broke" default. Keys work. They've worked for decades. The costs they generate are familiar and spread across enough budget categories that no single amount triggers urgency. It's the classic boiling frog problem: the pain is real, but it accumulates slowly enough to feel normal.

For property managers ready to quantify the case for change, building the ROI case for access technology provides a framework for comparing operational costs against upgrade investment and presenting a data-driven proposal to ownership.

Reframing the Business Case

The NAA/KeyTrak findings point to a strategic shift in how property managers should pitch access upgrades internally. Instead of positioning them as security investments (which compete with cameras, lighting, and patrols for a fixed security budget), frame them as operational efficiency projects.

Operational efficiency projects live in a different budget category. They're evaluated against staff time savings, turnover cost reduction, and resident satisfaction metrics. These are numbers that property managers already track and report on.

The resident angle strengthens this framing further. Yield Pro's survey of multifamily owners found that 62% cite resident expectations as a driver for electronic access control. Residents increasingly expect the convenience of keyless entry, mobile credentials, and remote guest access. They're comparing their building's experience to competitors that offer these features.

Solutions that prioritize convenience over hardware complexity align with this reality. Knockli, for example, takes a software-first approach to building access: it works with existing intercom systems to add AI-powered visitor screening and smart entry rules without replacing locks or installing new hardware. That kind of low-friction, operations-focused upgrade is precisely what the NAA/KeyTrak data suggests managers are actually seeking.

When building a business case for your next budget cycle, lead with operational metrics rather than security narratives:

• Lockout cost reduction. Calculate current annual spend on locksmith calls, staff overtime, and after-hours responses. Project the savings from backup digital entry methods.
• Rekeying elimination. Multiply per-unit rekeying costs by your annual turnover rate. That's the direct, recurring savings from digital credential management.
• Staff time recapture. Estimate weekly hours spent on key tracking, distribution, and access coordination. Convert to labor cost and reinvestment potential.
• Resident retention impact. Factor in what modern access convenience means for renewal rates, especially in competitive rental markets where amenities influence leasing decisions.

What This Means for Your Next Budget Cycle

The access control conversation is shifting. Security will always matter, but the data shows it's not what motivates property managers to actually commit to an upgrade. Operational convenience, cost reduction, and resident expectations are doing that work.

If you're preparing a budget proposal for building access technology, stop leading with "safer building." Start leading with "fewer lockout calls, zero rekeying costs, and happier residents." The NAA/KeyTrak research gives you the industry data to support that framing, and the AI adoption gap in property management offers context on why now is the right time to move from planning to implementation.

Ready to see what a convenience-first building access upgrade looks like? Explore how Knockli works for your property.