Apartment Building Main Entry Door Replacement — Secured Front Door
The front door of the building takes every tenant, delivery and move, and it no longer closes, locks or seals.
Reply within one business day. Or call / text 763-204-2099.
Apartment building main entry door replacement for walk-ups and small apartment buildings: JMB Builders replaces the secured front door with a steel or fiberglass door and frame, heavy-duty hinges, a closer and a sill pan, prepped for the electric strike your intercom or card reader uses. The access-control company connects it. Aluminum storefront entrances are glazing-contractor work we do not quote. Twin Cities metro, priced per door.
- Priced per door
- Steel or fiberglass door and frame
- Prepped for your intercom or card-reader strike
The main entry door on a walk-up or garden building opens hundreds of times a day, in January wind, with a closer fighting the stack pressure from the stairwell. The usual failures are a sagging door that drags, a closer that has given up, a frame rusted or rotted at the sill, and a strike that no longer lines up with the intercom release. When the front door does not latch, the building is not secure.
We replace it with a steel or fiberglass door and frame sized to the opening, on heavy-duty or continuous hinges, with a closer sized for an exterior door and a sill pan under the threshold. If the building has an intercom or card reader, the frame is prepped for the electric strike your system uses, and your access-control company or a licensed electrician connects it. We schedule the day together so the door is never left unsecured.
One thing we do not do: aluminum storefront entrances, the glass-and-aluminum systems in many lobbies. That is glazing-contractor work and we do not quote it. If your entry is a framed opening with a steel, wood or fiberglass door, it fits. Before we bid a building of five or more units, we check the city's contractor licensing and permit rules for that building.
Get a written quote for this job
Three photos and a sentence is enough: a reply within one business day, or ask for a free in-home estimate. Or text the photos to 763-204-2099.
What you supply
- Photos of the door from outside and inside, the sill and the hardware
- Your entry system and who services it: intercom, card reader, keypad
- Lock and key standard for the building
- Door color and glass choice
What JMB supplies
- In-person measure of the opening, frame and sill
- Steel or fiberglass door and frame ordered to the opening
- Heavy-duty or continuous hinges and a closer sized for the door
- Sill pan, threshold, sweep and weatherstrip
- Frame prepped for your electric strike; connection by your access-control company
- Old door and frame hauled away; entry and stairs kept clear
- Exterior trim and interior casing finished; painting a separate line
- COI and W-9 on request
How it is priced: per door
Quoted in writing from your photos, with a reply within one business day. What moves the number:
- Steel vs. fiberglass door, and glass in the door or a sidelite
- Frame and sill rot or rust found at tear-out
- Continuous hinge vs. heavy-duty butt hinges
- Electric strike prep and timing with your access-control company
- Masonry or siding work at the exterior trim
- Painting as its own line
Photos of both sides, the sill and the strike area get a reply within one business day; the free walkthrough measures it.
How long it takes
Typically one day per main entry door, secured by the end of the day. The door is ordered first; lead time depends on the brand and is written on the quote.
How your project works
- 1
Send photos, get a written quote
Send three photos of the space and a sentence about what you want. You get a clear, itemized reply within one business day. Prefer a look in person? A free in-home estimate is always an option.
- 2
Pick materials, or bring your own
We help you choose profiles and materials that fit the house and the budget, or match your existing millwork exactly — or you buy the door or trim yourself and we install it. Everything is confirmed before the crew is scheduled.
- 3
Clean, precise installation
The crew shows up on time, protects floors and furniture, and installs with tight joints and consistent reveals. Photos of the finished work go in your job folder.
- 4
Walkthrough and invoice
We walk the finished work with you. If anything is not right, we fix it before we call the job done. Then one invoice, paid by check or direct deposit — no card fees, no payment links.
Apartment Building Main Entry Door Replacement — Secured Front Door: questions, answered
What is the best door for an apartment building main entrance?
For a framed opening, an insulated steel door is the common choice for its strength and price, and fiberglass resists dents and rust at the bottom. Either goes in on heavy hinges with a closer sized for an exterior door. We price both if you want to compare.
Can you install the intercom or card reader on the new entry door?
We prep the door and frame for the electric strike or lock your system uses, and your access-control company or a licensed electrician connects it. We set the install day with them so the door is working and locked when everyone leaves.
Do you replace aluminum storefront doors on apartment lobbies?
No. Aluminum storefront entrances are glazing-contractor work, and we do not quote them. We replace main entry doors in framed openings: steel, fiberglass or wood doors in steel or wood frames.
Why does our building entry door not close in winter?
Warm air rising in the stairwell pulls on the door, the closer oil thickens in the cold, and a sagging door drags on the sill. A closer sized for the door, set for winter, and a door hung square usually fix it. If the frame has moved, the door and frame are replaced.
Will the building be unsecured while the entry door is replaced?
No. The new door is ordered before the old one comes out, and the swap is done in one day with the door locked by evening. If something unexpected turns up at the sill, the opening is closed and locked before we leave.
Does the main entry door have to meet accessibility rules?
It may. Hardware, threshold height and opening width at a building entrance can fall under accessibility rules. Your architect or the building official decides what applies; we order and install the door to that decision.
Recent JMB work, from our job log
59 installs recorded across 30 Twin Cities communities since Dec 2025. Window and door installs for homeowners and the builders we work with. Counts come straight from our job log; no customer names.
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Read morePage reviewed October 9, 2026 · JMB Builders LLC, MN license BC809005 · All apartment buildings pages
Where we work
Apartment & Multifamily Window and Door Projects near you
Based in Zimmerman, scheduling across the Twin Cities metro. Closest first: