I called Houdini when my Pella rear door wouldn't open. Based on my description and photos, Larry -- their senior technician -- diagnosed it as a door issue, not a lock issue, before coming out. He quoted $450 service fee plus parts, labor, and a 10% credit card processing fee. Steep -- and while the 10% credit card processing fee is well above the industry standard of ~3%, it was disclosed upfront. I needed my door fixed and agreed to the terms. Larry came out, disassembled the handle, determined it was the interior multipoint locking system, and told me to contact Pella. Nothing was fixed, no parts were used. I was then handed a bill for $713 -- the $450 service fee, an additional $150 in labor, the 10% processing fee, and tax. When I called to request a refund of the $150 -- the one charge I hadn't agreed to -- Larry called back and refused, explaining he had intentionally limited his work to avoid risking further damage. I understand and respect that reasoning. What I don't understand is being charged $150 in labor for disassembling a handle, determining the job was beyond the scope of the visit, and leaving the door unfixed. My door is still broken. Proceed with caution. Update 5/22 After I posted my review, Larry Schwalb called attempting to intimidate me into removing my review. After I ended the call telling him I didn't want to argue, he told me "you don't get the last word on this" and after I hung up he tried to call me again. Later, the "manager" posted the response below asking that I call the company to discuss the matter. Uncomfortable making the call myself after Larry's abusive conduct, I had my lawyer call hoping to seek an equitable resolution. Once she explained why she was calling, however, rather than putting her through to a manager she was routed to Larry. And, yet again, Larry -- aggressively -- insisted he was in the right, forcing my lawyer to end the call. Be aware. read more

Absolutely recommend! Houdini has lock brands that are far superior to lock brands available at hardware stores and typical lock shops. They know the high-end product and how to properly install to ensure maximum security of your home or business read more

I purchased a safe 12 years ago from Houdini . This safe has a battery operated locking mechanism. The batteries leaked and the corrosion on the battery contacts prevented the safe from opening . I spoke to Larry at the Houdini at the Abington location at about 4:00 pm . Larry gave me specific instructions on how to clean the contacts and after following his instructions, the locking mechanism worked . I was going to call Larry to tell him I was successful but since it was after 5:00 pm and I felt the office must be closed , I was decided to wait until tomorrow morning to call . At 5:45 pm I received a call from Larry to check on my progress and I was happy to tell him his instructions solved the problem. The service I received today was superior from problem solving to follow up ! read more

Very helpful and incredibly informative. Changed a bunch of locks and lockets and gave us an amazing learning experience at the same time. NOT INEXPENSIVE but worth it if you want it done right. read more

I strongly recommend Houdini Lock & Safe. I wasn't sure as to what type of lock set I wanted for my front door. Steve was so patient answering my questions, going through a catalog pointing out the types of locks, explaining in detail. More importantly, there was no pressure to buy any front door lock set. It was a very positive experience. read more

I can't give Houdini a favorable rating. Houdini quoted one amount and then changed it to another amount. The quote was over $250 to prepare keys. When I tried to use one key it didn't work. When I complained I was told to bring in the lock. Houdini knew it was a lock on an elevator and that I didn't own building or the elevator and herefore couldn't bring in the lock. I later went to another locksmith and the new locksmith charged under $20 for the same duplication of the key--but more importantly in worked, There was a little slight of hand in the transaction where Houdini in indicated it wouldn't be easy to duplicate because the key had to be "decoded". This wasn't an issue when this was properly done with the second locksmith. I requested a refund but never received anything because Houdini wanted the key back. But the keys had been sent out and I couldn't get this back. BTW--Larry sounded helpful and knowledgeable to me also but see the result above. Please beware !!! read more

Larry at Houdini Lock & Safe was very helpful and knowledgeable. I was able to solve the problem with just his advice. Couldn't ask for better customer service and will be happy to call them for any future locksmith or security needs. read more

Larry is a wonderful help. We had a problem with our safe. He was able to help me with one short phone call. Great service

Had a Safe that I needed open. keypad was faulty. Was informed of the 450.00 charge for visit. all ok. They were here 45 minutes opened safe installed new keypad. Keypad averages 165.00 Spoke with office and they read off numerous charges that were never mentioned or discussed 2400.00!!!!! Do not use this company!!! when I questioned bill it was as if they never heard me only wanted to confirm payment info. I learned the hard way. read more

Save your time and money. It's a scam. They gaVe me locks w scratches and watermarks everywhere. When I called Larry and patty- Larry called me - the customer- "crazy". I showed the locks to local police and to my locksmith. They both said the houdini issued locks looked usEd. You can not return. I called for refund the day after. They are Horrible. STay away from Houdini locks. 10:20 am. Larry (director of operations for Houdini) just called and threatened me. He said: "you have one hour to take down your yelp review or I will become your worst nightmare." I asked several times to speak to the owner and they would not accommodate me. These people do not handle customer complaints professionally. They just threatened me. read more

$25 minimum on debit or credit, but they don't have an ATM so I had to walk elsewhere. They were very fast and one of the two stores that had the key I needed for duplication (other was Wilensky). The key is a bit old fashioned/weirdly shaped. I went to Houdinis cus it was 5 minutes closer. However, the key costed 16.50! Which seems very pricy. Right before I got my other key duplicated elsewhere for $2 read more

Most overpriced locksmith in the city. You pay $350 just for them to show up at your door. Anything they do afterwards is charged on top of the $350. For a simple lock change be prepared to pay $1,000. Then they expect you to have the $1,000 in cash or they then charge you 10% extra for using a credit card. They also talk you into getting the work done by doublespeak and confusing terms to make it sound like a big job. Don't ever talk to someone named Larry. He's the double speak king . He also wastes your time telling you how wonderful he is. Never use Houdini!' read more

Couldn't get my Audi's car key to work- only the valet started the car. The dealer wanted $350 for a key replacement. Took it to Houdini and he was actually able to fix the problem and only charged me $35 for the time. He had the blanks to cut me a replacement onsite.. totally worth the trip. I probably could have gotten one online, but even then it would still have needed to be cut and re-programmed. They're lifesavers.. saved me again. read more

I found Houdini to be very reliable and very responsive to my phone call. They gave me advice over the phone and help me solve my problem without their having to make a house call. They spent 20 minutes on the phone with me working through a problem, and solved it for me. Couldn't ask for better.A close family member had a safe installed, again flawless. read more

I've used the Houdini team for my home and business several times and would not think of calling or referring any other company to handle such an important service. The knowledge and experience Houdini brings to the table is unmatched and their service team is top notch. Be sure to call Houdini for all your lock and safe needs! read more

I've been with Houdini for 28 years. could not ask for better service. although my alarm system is older, they always manage yo fix my problem right away. would recommend Houdini for everything. thank you read more

Best Security Company ever! They are celebrating 70 years in business & it shows. Houdini has the most knowledgeable Technicians & have never let me down. Great job guys. read more

Called around for estimates and this place was outrageous. And they only accept cash or add an additional 10% for using a credit card. I'm a homeowner, resident and neighbor and for as long as I live here won't ever use or recommend this place. read more

For months I dealt with a door that became misaligned after the unit above me was doing some construction. Around that same time I had Houdini come in and fix my lock shortly there after essentially I could not lock my door without jiggling wiggling and pushing I called houdini to come in and help and right after he was done my door is never been so good and he was a man of his word and fixed it for a very very reasonable fee- essentially for nothing It's good to see a company that does not point fingers and stands by their work even when it may not be their fault Cheers to Larry and crew read more

Good response but OUTRAGEOUS cost. Never told me of 25.00 charge for my credit card, lockout cost me 266.00 and guy tried to sell some new lock to me for 145 bucks. If my regular locksmith had called me 10 minutes sooner I'd have cancelled the appointment. Part of running a successful business is being fair and not screwing potential future customers just because you can. 177.00 to show up and 95 in additional fees for 15 minutes. Steer clear and use someone else, very dissatisfied. Sean Ogden Update. Larry called 2 weeks after the above mentioned service. Nice guy. read more

This guy came recommended by the front desk in my moms building in center city. I knew she needed a new battery in her safe and suggested she call them. They responded with no can do. We will replace the safe with a new one for $500 and hung up the phone on her. We called another locksmith who came out and changed the battery Not great customer service. He might be popular but I would not use this service read more

By far this company Houdini Lock & Safe stands out as a leader in business! From my first call to them they were prompt in their response, knowledgeable in their repair and replacement of my locks and very courteous, with regard to my staff and customers. I would highly recommend them to anybody who is looking for a professional to handle their lock and safe needs read more

I m a prior customer. My safe battery died and I needed the safe opened It took Larry 5 minutes to open. He needed 2 batteries that he said he d get from his truck. He charged $150 for batteries that cost $5 at cvs. He charged$600!!! Stay away from Houdini ! There are many locksmiths with consistently good reviews!! Ie Glenloch and Patriot !! Both companies are professional and fair priced and a pleasure to deal with! read more

Updating my review to 3 stars for 'A-OK'. The second lock that Houdini placed has now officially lasted 3 weeks, leading me to believe that the original lock itself was faulty (as a followup call from Houdini suggested...faulty lock = fault of the manufacturer, not the locksmith). 1 star for 24hr service 1 star for coming back multiple times to fix the lock 1 star for the friendly, cheerful locksmith minus 1 star for cost minus 1 star for my ordeal the second time around (not getting a callback after 40 minutes, locksmith saying he'd have to charge me all over again as stated in my original review). read more

Man, this place is the worst. I just went there to get a key made. The man at the counter was rude and super unfriendly. When I got home to use the new key, it didn't really fit, as in, with a lot of effort twisting it in, it worked, but it took even longer and much more effort to get the key out. I called the customer service line, only to encounter a non-human recording. When I eventually spoke to a human, he was enthusiastically rude, explaining that it was my fault that the key made didn't work. He then said I should get off the phone and hurry back there before it closed at 5:30. The time when I called was 5:20. Definitely would not recommend this place. Also the key cost over double the price of my local hardware store. Unfortunately they were unable to make the copy there, and recommended Houdini. I wish they hadn't. Also, I was not provided with a receipt, so I'm really hoping that when I do go back to get it fixed I will not encounter any issues. read more

Larry came out to my house after hours (~6PM) was extremely nice, and easily able to fox and diagnose the issue with my front door. He was able to offer suggestions on new locks to replace my current and was very good with my children who were locked out with me and my wife. I would highly recommend to anyone needing lock smith assistance read more

A $25 minimum charge to use your credit card and a 10% handling fee on top of that? WTF is that about? Shame on you, Houdini. Your prices are already high enough to make my money disappear, why must you ream me through the rear posterior to make it that much more painful? read more

I needed a key for my recently rented apartment. The people at this store told me they wouldn't guarantee that the key they made would work, because mine wasn't an original. Good grief! Who has an original key for a 20 year old apartment? Sure enough, it didn't work. I went to Home Depot, had the key duplicated again, at half the cost. The fellow at HD had a look at the key which Houdini made, and grimaced. Fool me once, shame on me ... read more

Ok, so $350 for a service call! That is outrageous. My tenant could not get into his condo at 4 o'clock Wednesday before Thanksgiving so I guess you had him right where you wanted him. Then adding an additional $125 for taking apart the lock, then an additional $51 and change for parts? ...add the tax and it was $564 and he still needs to replace the lock!!! Called Delaware Valley Locksmith as directed by condo management and found out a whole new lock installed would be $475. You should be ashamed of yourselves. read more

Yeah, there's a reason why Houdini gets the worst reviews. We got charged $400+ for essentially just getting us into our house and not repairing our lock. They charge a 10% credit card fee too. Terrible and glad we'll never have to use them again. read more

It's $6.50 per key for a copy and they impose a ridiculous $25 minimum for credit card purchases. After being sent to an ATM that was not working and informing the employee of the situation he told me to "call the police" and they had been doing it for years. Go to Home Depot this small business does not deserve your business! read more

Larry is thief ! Thier business is out to make your money disappear. I had them drill a safe Larry was out of breath in 10 minutes. He complained how hard it was . After speaking with several lock and safe companies without mentioning the name they mentioned Houdini .They mentioned Larry . It took him a total amount of 25 min to open a safe he charged me over $ 1100 he also did not fix it he wanted an additonal $350. It was a basic fire safe. I guess I was the fool for paying them but they would have charged the CCard anyway. Use Houdini if you would like to watch your money disappear . read more

pat continues to hang up on myself and husband. pat is the "manager" hes making all his employees hang up on us when we call regarding a refund. the cost of a key is 433 .... we never got a key made but were told due to my attitude we can not get a refund. what does my attitude have to do with a refund ?? we are legally entitled to a refund if we got no service. a cancellation fee is not the same price as the product according to a woman who works in dispatch. This is how they want to play in a pandemic then game on. read more

jesus h christ, i had to take out a second mortgage just to pay for a duplicate copy of a safe key. since i'm a generous person, i'll give credit where credit is due: 1 star for pleasant service + 1 star for being close to my house + 1 star for the key being cut correctly so i could open said safe i fear that the total value of the contents of my safe is less than the 9.17 usd it cost to have a second key. (note: i had the original key...it wasn't like they had to custom make one to open my goods.) blah. shoulda gone back to wilensky's... read more

Got a copy of some keys made. Cost about $25 for five keys. Cash only. A little more expensive than I expected. The guy behind the counter was nice enough. read more

Who knew locking yourself out would cost around $350. The guys were courteous, but on the phone I was told it would be around $160, the guy had to go through our garage and an inside door, untold to me until the bill it is an additional $75 per lock, for a grand total of $370. This is highway robbery. Unfortunate for us it was just after 5 pm or we would have called another place. Take your business elsewhere if you lock yourself out of your house. read more

Just spoke to Larry from Houdini's and he is willing to correct the issue with the two non working keys. Being a local business I am willing to give Houdini an second chance. read more

Had issues with their call service, but thats about it. Needed a copy of a key and went into the store itself. The workers were knowledgeable, friendly, and had personalities that i appreciated. they copy was made quite quickly and for a reasonable price. If i needed to get another copy of a key, or anything else for a manner, i would def see these guys again. read more

Of all the stores in Philadelphia, this is the one that has made me think about leaving town. I was ripped off by them in such as bad way, it is embarrassing to remember it. I agreed to a new fancy lock for my door and ended up paying over $1000 for a new lock and access to a broken fire safe. OMG. THey really are the worst. read more

Came out and helped in a flash. I got an electronic lock.. But the hole was too small to install it... They offered to help me with a tool at no charge.. 1/3 off of other store's price. read more