District 5 is the second most-traded district in the City. It’s popular and the hot bed of where the techies, gay and lesbian population — among many other different groups — live.  

District 5 encompasses Noe, Eureka and Cole Valleys, the Haight and Lower Haight, Mission Dolores, Dolores Heights, Corona Heights, Buena Vista and Ashbury Heights and more. The area’s proximity to BART lines, 101/280, MUNI lines, views, parks and its warmer weather plus a mix of demographics, topographical and architectural assets combine to make this area very attractive to buyers, renters and tourists.

Cole Valley. This small tree-lined, cute and curvy corridor along the N-Judah MUNI line is comprised of lots of 2- or 3-unit buildings, single-family houses and some very large homes (3000+ sqft) that have been divided up into apartments, condos, TIC units or preserved as enormous houses that, if restored, can be quite expensive. Focused on Carl and Cole Streets the area is wedged between the Haight and UCSF’s main Parnassus campus so you’ll get a younger vibe and more renters as the area has a good number of apartment buildings. Area architecture ranges from Victorian, Edwardian, California craft with some smatters of mid-century brutalism thrown in for good measure. The area is the last enclave of central San Francisco before you hit the Sunset district. There’s a fair chance you’ll get parking (tandem) but the lack of parking may be especially pernicious because one unit may have parking while the other doesn’t. There’s less new construction. You’ll have 45 minutes less fog than the Inner Sunset. If you want character and charm, this area is for you.

Ashbury Heights Perched above Cole Valley to the west of the Castro is a clutch of larger, charming homes that are a mix of Victorian and Craftsman style with a little Art Deco thrown in. Single family homes are cute and some have been enlarged. Instead of full-flat condos you’ll find multi-unit buildings. The area can feel a little removed as it’s up a hill.  is quiet. Last to get the fog for areas west of Twin Peaks.

Duboce Triangle Centered around Duboce Park with its large dog park. This was a formerly a rough area in the 1970s that is now a much-coveted one. Charming period Victorian flats (2 or 3 to a building), mix of those elements and craft details.  There are three quiet streets: Pierce, Potomac and Carmelita that have the lure of single-family homes on cul-de-sacs. There are some large and spectacular specimens on Waller and Scott Streets too. People can hop on the N MUNI line here, get onto 101 easily or bike to mid-Market too. There are lots of bikes wiggling along the wiggle and there are trees, multiunit buildings and hidden driveways.

Buena Vista. Centered on Buena Vista Park’s large oval shape, this area is made up of 2-3 unit buildings, a very large complex called Park Hill, and, towards Buena Vista West you will see very large detached large houses, some have been split up, while others not, some with stupendous views and others with spectacular renovations.

Corona Heights. The lower parts of Corona Heights will feature multi-unit buildings but the further you go up towards Corona Heights Park the more likely you’ll encounter more houses than condos. The houses are smaller than those in Buena Vista but will have more variety. They sit on curvy, steep and narrow roads with trees. Condos tend to be mid-century if they exist. Views are likely. Be prepared for stairs and narrow floors.

The Castro (aka Eureka Valley) Traditionally an Irish neighborhood, the gays moved here in large numbers starting in the 1970s & 1980s turning the leafy neighborhood into the gayborhood. Many of the quiet wood-floored Victorians have been turned into ones worthy of catalogs; throw in some nightlife and a constant stream of new transplants all lend to create one of the most vibrant neighborhoods in the City. Architecturally, there’s a good amount of variation: from carved-up Victorians that were turned into full-floor condos with some being upgraded while others still have that split-bathroom, double-parlor, oak-floor vintage feel. Chances are that you may get parking but it may be a small and tight space, have a steep driveway or is actually a leased spot elsewhere. An increasing number of houses have been restored, preserved and stunningly remodeled if not enlarged. You will find a fixer every now and when there’s one around people will fall over themselves to get it. There are also a large number of rental units that have had long-term tenants which can implicate a lot of drama if folks want to displace them. The epicenter of the neighborhood is 18th Street and Castro and/or Market and Castro Street with countless rainbow flags, bars, restaurants and the Castro Theater. It’s always a show here.

Mission Dolores This is hipster central that’s focused on the newly redone Dolores Park and palm-tree-lined Dolores Street. Sunny and warm you’ll find many a coffee shop, bike shop and hot restaurants. Prices are high. You’ll get a mix of big full-floor condos, TICs that may convert and a few single-family homes will likely cost a hefty sum even for fixers. Some new larger developments were built near Market Street that sold just a couple of years ago that are now seeing first resales for very hefty returns. The other main drags are bike-centric Valencia Street between 15th and 20th Streets, 18th St from Church to Dolores, and you’ll see lines of people waiting to get their Tartine baked goods or Bi-Rite ice cream or at Delfina and many more taco places as the area’s Hispanic heritage shines through despite gentrification pushes. You’ll see lots of tech shuttles, fixed-gear bikes, BMWs, and Vespas and charming Victorians in the middle of the Spanish Mediterranean buildings.

The Inner Mission Like Noe Valley is also focused on 24th Street, the traditionally Hispanic neighborhood has been ground central for the latest gentrification fights. What’s happening? Rental properties are being turned into TICs or razed to make way for larger market-rate condominiums for techie and professionals alike. At the same time more bike lanes are coming as are tech shuttles and protests. Inventory wise you’ll have old facade homes (split between condos/TICs and single-family homes) that have been really remodeled (quartz countertops, engineered woods, large format tile baths) that are sold as TICs as well as the fixer that is in need of substantial fixing. Therefore, you’re likely to find TICs here more than anywhere else in the City. What’s the draw? The neighborhood’s weather is warm, transit — car, shuttle or BART — is good and the neighborhood’s diversity are all draws.

Noe Valley Also an Irish neighborhood in the past, the area’s rolling hills and large 1800+ sqft Queen Anne Victorians has become home to an increasing number of large trophy homes that have been both restored and enlarged into the Noe Valley Box — luxurious 2500-4000 sqft houses pushing the $5M-$7M+ mark depending on view, amenities and proximity to 24th Street, the area’s cute main drag. Particularly focused around 24th and Noe Streets and radiating up and out, you’ll find walls of glass, modern luxurious kitchens and moving roofs in these homes — just spot the updated sans serif house numbers to see which ones have had the enlargement. But you’ll also find charming, large full-floor flats (some with upgrades). You’ll also encounter multi-unit income properties, bidding wars for the fixers on the market and everything in between. As time goes one, expect to find fewer fixers and more perfect-looking streets in the area (each is very different though) as inhabited by tech execs who could take the shuttle to work but drive their luxury hybrid cars in so as to miss the commute and the fixers that remain will have folks who’ve lived in the area for 30+ years.

Glen Park Previously an afterthought between Noe Valley, Bernal Heights and Sunnyisde and I-280, the area has come into its own as a viable alternative to Noe Valley and Bernal Heights. This area has windy streets that go around the rim of Glen Canyon (so there are some hills with narrower streets) to the “village.” The area’s draw stems from its proximity to I-280 and the appropriately named Glen Park BART. Glen Park village is essentially the intersection of Diamond and Bosworth, which has about 10-15 stores. Expect to find homeowners who bought at unbelievably low prices to the professional class with young families who have turned these eclectic homes into pragmatic, nicely redone homes with an occasional luxury home here and there. The area blends into Sunnyside and into Westwood Park as well as Mission Terrace.

Right between Mission Dolores/Castro and Pacific Heights (two of the most actively traded and valued areas of the City) sits MLS District 6, which is a crossroads of sorts both figuratively and literally. District 6 includes Hayes Valley, NoPa and Lower Pacific Heights among more. The area is criss-crossed by major thoroughfares that bring people east to west as well as north to south across San Francisco (Van Ness, Gough, Franklin, Oak and Fell). This area used to be the western most part of the City (hence the 'Western Addition' moniker some parts of the district has) but now sits in the middle of course thanks to 100+ years of growth. There’s such a mix of people and property here that you’re bound to find something here you’ll like whether it’s modern condominium building (there are plenty), historic Victorians (fixer or completely redone) to drab Mid-Century apartment buildings. The area can be gritty and narrow or modern and wide and everything in between.

Hayes Valley. Up until a decade ago Hayes Valley was under the last part of the Central Freeway which made it dark and dingy. But after urban renewal efforts the area has become vibrant and has transformed radically going from gritty to hipster in an blink of an eye. Social life, shopping and dining is focused on Hayes Street with increasing overflow onto Gough Street. The area’s proximity to the Symphony, Opera and Civic Center naturally predisposed to drawing lots of people. All this growth has brought more cars and traffic but the area generally flows well despite being the main link to 101 for the western half of the City. Architecturally, there’s a mix of new condo buildings ranging from the cool and sleek feel of 8 Octavia, 450 Hayes and 400 Grove, the more approachable design at 580 Hayes, 300 Ivy and most accessible mid-2000s building called, aptly, the Hayes, at 55 Page Street. More micro-units are in the pipeline along Octavia and many of the newly built units built since 2013 have been rolled out as rental buildings (the Avalon ones for example). You may think that these bigger buildings would dwarf older ones but they don’t as the way buildings were constructed in the area (along slopes or built on a higher podium) have a sense of scale and volume that combine with older trees to give the area a more established feel. Most older properties you’re likely to encounter here are the Victorian flats (some updated, some not) with the charm of double-parlors, the occasional grand-scale Victorian/Edwardian single family house that stretches back onto one of the many small alleys that dot the area that served as alleys for carriage houses (and now garages). Many of the bigger modern structures here will have garage parking while many other older structures will have a separate garage facing out onto one of those alleyways we talked about but those alleys too (named after flowers) are being built up with single-family houses springing up over their carriage house roots. As the density of the area increases so does car, shuttle and bike traffic. 

The Panhandle & NoPa (North of Panhandle), Alamo Square, Western Addition. Two major thoroughfares, Oak and Fell Streets, define the area. This area is filled with wood-floored, single-pane window Edwardian buildings with many that have been split up into condos with decently tall ceilings, plaster walls, and split bathrooms. The ones that have been restored may be TICs for a while before converting into condos, renovations of big houses can be stunning, expensive and more traditional: think Restoration Hardware while others can be victorian on the outside but ultra-modern on the inside. Parking tends to be tandem or squeezed into low-clearance garages unless steel beams were added. For investment buyers, there are large apartment buildings that occasionally come onto the market (usually filled with tenants) or, in some cases, a vacant two- or three-unit fixer will come onto the market.  

The Haight. While technically in District, it’s worth noting that this area mirrors NoPa a great deal except for there are more trees and parks. Famous for the summer of love and hippies it’s more filled with techies and yuppies than before. There are lots of rental flats in carved up Victorians, big houses and condos. The lots in the area tend to be deeper and , in some cases, wider, which leads to grand houses, multi-unit buildings or mixed use ones too. Some properties have been renovated while many are fixers. Caution should be used with tenant issues, condo/TIC issues and historic issues if you're planning on remodeling. 

When people think luxury or expensive houses you think Pacific Heights. When you have movie shots that aren't the Painted Ladies or the Golden Gate Bridge you'll see shots from here.

Presidio Heights. A lot of times when you think of big, detached and stately Pacific Heights mansions you’re really thinking of Presidio Heights homes. Tucked next to the woodsy Presidio, butting up against the Marina with vistas of the Golden Gate Bridge, Tiburon, Marin and the Marin Headlands, this is the Restoration-Hardware-meets-Architectural Digest cover homes. These are the detached homes that are either imposing (on top of a hill) or framed just so. These homes have been redone and done up (the Designer Showcase showdown homes are here a lot of times along with AIA tour homes).  So why is this the epicenter of big, well-done mansions? It’s got to do with demographics. The truth of the matter is that many of the homes in Pacific Heights have only just turned over to new internet money. That’s why you’ll run into more porta potties and scaffolding trucks over there than you will in Presidio Heights where you’re likely to run into an embassy or dead-end street.

The People: The well-heeled who are never home, upwardly mobile professionals with younger families and aspiration, the established family, financiers and ambassadors and diplomats (or at least diplomatic plates)

Marina/Cow Hollow. This is the land of the ‘blue-shirt army’ the just-out-of-college or MBA-in-hand-just now crowd that lives here and take the 1 California Express bus that brings these legions of financial/services sector workers to the Financial District on weekdays. You’ll find spacious houses, art-deco era condos, and a score of rental buildings with garages on the bottom floor in this maritime neighborhood that has 2 main shopping drags (Chestnut and Union) and Lombard as your big thoroughfare. Living here is about the outdoors and night life to an extent. Views, if you get them, are of Alcatraz, the Marin Headlands and the Golden Gate Bridge. You’ll get fog earlier and the area is avoided a lot of times because it’s built on fill from the World’s Fair. Many of the properties here will be investment income properties with 2-5 unit buildings filled 1 and 2 bedroom rental units. The units will have single-pane windows, dated bathrooms (circa 1930 or 1980), a double parlor layout with hardwood floors, Spanish-style stucco buildings with some embellishments with garages underneath

The upgraded versions of these former rental units make up the condominium inventory here. Usually the condos have thicker (and darker) hardwood floors, nicer cabinets with a Bertazzoni (maybe even Viking) gas range, stone countertops, recessed lighting, a higher bedroom-to-bathroom ratios, marble-laden bathrooms with plush finishes, plantation shutters and carpeted bedrooms. You’re bound to find a coved ceiling or two too.  in These condos tend to start in the $1.2M+ range going all the way up to $3M-$4M+ depending on views, room count, finish level and/or amenities.

Pacific Heights is the granddaddy (or grand-mommy?) of San Francisco neighborhoods. People think of decades and years here instead of months and days. There are plenty of homes that can trace their ownership lineage to the time when X family came to the City from the East Coast where X made their fortune in something. That pattern has repeated itself of late as the area has become home to many a tech-derived fortune. Houses are large and opulent and vaguely East Coast-meets-London. The scale of properties here is what sets them apart from many other parts of the City. You’ll see many a porta-potty here as renovations take a long time as there’s more house and more to do as the homes that haven’t been touched in years can be cavernous, drafty and creaky. Lots of changes (some elective, some required) are needed in a Pacific Heights fixer but the resulting product can be over-the-top and is likely to be refined, restrained and tasteful — or so we hope. More tawdry renovations at these price points tend to take place on the Peninsula as most developers, architects and homeowners like to show off the views you’re likely to get here. And yes, you’re paying for location, prestige and views.

This is one of the most varied of neighborhoods in the City. From the ultra posh Russian Hill or Telegraph Hill to the grit of the Tenderloin. Various building and planning department restrictions constrain how much these neighborhoods can ever change. From historic preservation regulations in the Hills — Nob, Telegraph and Russian — to the anti-condo development laws regulating SRO buildings in the Tenderloin you get hardcore entrenched San Francisco-ness in District 8.

Telegraph Hill is iconic, postcard San Francisco focused around Coit Tower. In between cable cars tourists, windy and narrow streets, you’ll get a mix of stucco-clad, bay-window buildings filled with luxury condominiums, apartments the occasional TIC unit along with stately homes of famous people. You’ll have stunning renovations mixed in with dilapidated buildings on the major streets and a propensity to have little alleys and dead-end streets. There are lots of multi-unit rental buildings with just-minted MBA finance types, to buildings that house very long-term (i.e., protected) tenants in various states of disrepair. While garage parking is the norm here so is a shortage of parking. Rents are high because these are the neighborhoods moviemakers focus on.

Russian Hill is also iconic San Francisco.  The homes here are a little more spread out and there are some of the City’s early high-rise buildings located in the neighborhood (several of the City’s 13 co-op buildings are in Russian Hill). The streets can be steep, narrow and windy — the crooked part of Lombard Street is located in Russian Hill. While condominiums and co-ops are the norm here so are opulent single-family houses. Like the other hills you’re getting panoramic views, prestige and location (if you need to be close to the FiDi of course).

The Tenderloin/Van Ness Like the meat cuts of the same name, this neighborhood is indeed tougher and rougher. Euphemistically known as Lower Pacific Heights or Lower Nob Hill (sometimes the Tendernob) the area is permanently gritty and shadier. Why? Big building shadows, soot from area traffic because there’s a high frequency of heavily traveled one-way streets going east-to-west and north-to-south here (e.g., Larkin, Geary, Van Ness, Ellis, Eddy, Taylor, Bush, Post, Sutter). The area has long been associated with the seedier elements of society. Any mention of the area must also note the large homeless population too. It’s tough. That said, there is real estate here too. There are newer build condominium buildings here (see Civic Center) along with old-school buildings like the Belgravia scattered throughout the area that surprise as well as puzzle in this most urban of areas.

Civic Center is a very modern model urban forest. Being anchored by Van Ness Ave. the soundtrack here is of car horns, revving engines and reverse beeps. Most homes here will be a condo or stock co-operative (co-op) with views of, well, other tall condo buildings. Many condos will have a decidedly pre-war feel but yet many others are of newer construction with varying degrees of views. Most will have at least a secure entry lobby with some having security guards. Parking, if you can find it, will be underground. The area itself is full of cars, artists (the symphony, opera and ballet are here), lawyers (state and federal courts are located here along with SF’s city government), tourists and homeless people. You may get swept away by the odd wind vortex that’s created by Van Ness near Grove Street. If being close to mass transit, the arts and a certain grittiness is your cup of tea, then this urban jungle of neighborhoods will be just right. Sutter’s new Cathedral Hill hospital along with a few other adventurous car dealerships are leading a Van Ness corridor revival. Notable buildings in the area: One Daniel Burnham Court (senior-focused units and circa 1980s feel condos), the Artani (2008 vintage modern LEED-certified condos),the Marquis (industrial timber and brick lofts circa 2002), Opera Plaza (1970s brutalist architecture condos gone a wry) and Blanc SF (circa 2014 new-build condos designed, in part, by Stanley Saitowitz) and new build ones like the Rockwell coming online soon.

Union Square. This is the most New York-like living you can have in the City that’s located in an area where you can hear honking and hail a cab. If you can find housing as the area is known for its tourists, shopping, holiday ice rink and proximity to the Tenderloin. Spaces for sale can be hidden gems, but you’re far more likely to find commercial properties here. There are a few named condominium buildings here (e.g., the Odeon, the Royal) that have units with views (usually of other buildings or a busy street) and parking is at a premium.

One of the largest and most diverse of districts, District 9 runs the gamut from luxury skyscraper penthouses with door people, high HOAs, amenities and valet parking to tiny bungalows, creaky Victorians that are falling apart, lofts, stunning hillside mansions and more.

What’s common to the area? Well, it’s sunny, closest to the freeways and mass transit (BART and CalTrain) and home to the emerging biotech sector, AT&T Park, the future Golden State Warriors stadium it’s no wonder why it’s one of the most-traded of the districts and the most travelled and trafficked. The people who live here range from renter, owner, tenant, landlord, lifers to just arrived, hipster, activist, baseball star, jet setter, the elderly, kids, techies who code to people who've never touched a computer. The Inner Mission. Like Noe Valley is also focused on 24th Street, the traditionally Hispanic neighborhood has been ground central for the latest gentrification fights. What’s happening? Rental properties are being turned into TICs or razed to make way for larger market-rate condominiums for techie and professionals alike. At the same time more bike lanes are coming as are tech shuttles and protests. Inventory wise you’ll have old facade homes (split between condos/TICs and single-family homes) that have been really remodeled (quartz countertops, engineered woods, large format tile baths) that are sold as TICs as well as the fixer that is in need of substantial fixing. Therefore, you’re likely to find TICs here more than anywhere else in the City. What’s the draw? The neighborhood’s weather is warm, transit — car, shuttle or BART — is good and the neighborhood’s diversity are all draws. There are newer condo buildings towards Potrero, loft buildings like the ones near Hampshire and 18th Streets as well as the big brick and timber lofts on York Street as well as the big Union SF development around 20th and Bryant. The Media Gulch enclave near Alabama,19th Streets and Mariposa Streets has been led by the likes of Heath Ceramics, Slow Club, Coffee Bar, Sightglass, Mission Cliffs, Universal Café, Flower and Water, and with new businesses opening up every day there’s plenty more coming.

Potrero Hill 1 (flats). This area runs along 16th Street to about 18th Street along the area’s main drags — 18th, 17th and 16th Streets. In the flats you’ll see a mix of trades-related warehouses interspersed with historic loft conversion buildings, newer stock condominium buildings (1001 17th, the Onyx) and a very large condo development building at 17th Street and Kansas (The Potrero) that are complete with its very own Whole Foods and the large series of buildings along Carolina Street.

Potrero Hill 2 (North Slope). As you go up the slope you’ll encounter a mix older Edwardian two-unit buildings, marina-style houses, Victorians with fewer that have been renovated but the ones that have can be breathtaking or have breathtaking views. There is a good crop of circa 2007 vintage remodels in the area for some reason too with colored-glass pendants. This area focuses around 18th Street with its little shops, restaurants and venerable Goat Hill Pizza. The area is sought after for these single-family homes and split-up Victorians as many will have character and views of the City’s skyline.

Potrero Hill 3 (South Slope). On the other side of Southern Heights is the South Slope of Potrero Hill. You have a sunnier, drier part and a more desolate feel because the views are usually of 280/101. The streets are broader and there are big Victorians, some Edwardian condos and duplexes all sloping down. But as you get to 25th the freeway noise, and the slope downwards towards the infamous Potrero housing projects that have been identified as the next big redevelopment site which will feature a more mixed-income, less-dense focus that has worked at 25th and Harrison and at Valencia Gardens at Valencia and 14th Streets. Part of that redevelopment will also feature new market-rate condominiums too.

China Basin/Mission Creek is really just made up of one street — Berry Street — but the area is home to lots and lots of people as the area has been filled up by large bulky condo buildings bounded by 280, Mission Creek (which still stinks at low tide) and CalTrain and AT&T Park. The condos are modern, large, and somewhat generic. Why are they appealing? It’s a little bit of Tampa or suburbia in San Francisco as most units will have at least 2- to 3-bedrooms with 2- to 3-baths and there will be more consistency in the inventory as they were built off of the same mold. The most energy efficient building is the Arterra which manages to have a 24-hour front desk staff, gym, parking and common area rooms while having low HOA dues is because of the LEED elements the building incorporated when it was being built in the 2008-2009 era. The latest development, the Arden, expands on leitmotifs from its sister buildings in Mission Bay (the Radiance and Madrone) by having light, double-pane windows, recessed lighting, drywall and professional management. Most the buildings will likely have parking (at least the 2-bedroom units will) and most having a door attendant downstairs with key-fob entry. You’re likely to see a lot of investors here as the City’s comprehensive Rent Ordinance doesn’t apply here meaning no rent or eviction control.

Mission Bay the former dredged bay/dumping ground has been reclaimed by UCSF with its massive research buildings, Women’s & Children’s’ hospital and broad avenues. the area is flat and has great views of SF’s skyline. Many of the buildings here are high-end rentals with two notable exceptions built by the mogul Bosa family called the Radiance and the Madrone. These feature large condos with higher-end but generic finishes.

Dogpatch was home to the City Attorney and to the Hell’s Angels for the longest time as the area languished after the area’s Pier 70 shuttered. The area has revitalized over the past 10 years with loft condominiums leading the way, the addition of the T-Line on 3rd Street and now with the promise of Pier 70’s ballot-measure approved revitalization project. While you can take CalTrain down the Peninsula you’ll likely drive on 280. And the area’s soundtrack is the sound of rubber meeting 280’s pavement. You’ll find loft condominiums from the 2000 and later vintage. You’ll see wood floors, brick & timber, modern build condos with more rooms and space with minimal amenities but with parking. The Hell’s Angels and City Attorney still live here. South of Market (SOMA) was the original home to the urban lofts in San Francisco. Starting in the 1990s the areas warehouses and vacant lots were filled in by, well, loft condominiums on the area’s small alley side streets. First emerging in the 1990s as “live/work” lofts where anyone living in these units also had to have a business license from the City (lots of ‘consultants’) they’ve evolved over time growing more elaborate and more luxurious.  There are some stunning examples of brick and timber renovations like those in the Oriental Warehouse at Delancey and Brannan Streets down to the Clocktower, to modern concrete/harsher designs 855 Folsom to more generic, more modern ones. Starting in the late 2000s with the Palms at 4th and Bryant the area has now moved solidly into the mid- to high-rise luxury developments that are named or are known by their addresses: 829 Folsom, 200 Delancy, 175 Bluxome, the Portside, Bridgeview, etc. Traffic from 1st to 6th Streets on weekday mornings until 10am and starting again from 4pm until 7pm is nightmarish especially if there’s a baseball game or an accident on the bridge; yet, on weekends its super quiet. Within this area is Mid-Market/Central SOMA, from 6th Street to 12th, where twitter, square and other .coms have setup shop (thanks to the Mayor’s payroll tax incentives) alongside local arts organizations and more and more luxury condominium buildings (some being rental ones like the NEMA). The juxtaposition between gridlocked cars (despite big one-way streets), people walking to work from CalTrain or BART with ironic t-shirts and the homeless population this area is undergoing rapid development/gentrification with prices rising as more inventory is built. The issue is that many of the new-build condominiums are far more of a commodity because they are so similar to each other (although having parking is key as the City doesn’t require a 1:1 ratio of units and parking spaces).

South Beach. The land of high-rise condos, some luxurious, others ultra-luxurious with amenities and high HOAs that seem to be springing up like weeds. Also home to mid-rise buildings that house baseball stairs, corporate rentals in a streetscape filled with construction cranes, baseball traffic and commuters. Even though there are views of the Bay Bridge and the East Bay it still feels like the most generic part of the City. Traffic has gotten worse and worse as the economy picks up and as more skyscrapers are being built. Some marque buildings here: One Rincon Hill, the Harrison (aka, the second tower), the Infinity and the Lumina among many other buildings opened as rentals but may well be turned into condominiums sooner or later.

A Bounty on Bernal Heights

Bernal Heights is one of the most popular neighborhoods we’ve worked in. Like all neighborhoods there are variations between the different parts that comprise the subdistrict but the ones in Bernal can be dramatic. The differences between one block and another, much less from the house next door can be especially marked. This is definitely a case-by-case type of neighborhood. A few general notes: 

There was a push in the 1990s to bury power lines where neighbors would chip in X amount of dollars and PG&E would work on burying overhead powerlines. The difference between powerline blocks and non-powerline blocks is significant. To bury powerlines today is next to impossible as the costs are prohibitively expensive — some estimates say it’s at least $1 million per mile with years of approvals and studies needed, not to mention the collective agreement of everyone on the block. The practical difference is this: homes on buried powerline blocks wanting to upgrade to 200-amp service (which is what’s considered the standard needed for EVs and all-electric appliances) will cost more because you have to break up sidewalks and basement slabs, whereas overhead powerline drops from telephone poles make for easier service upgrades. 

The parcels are smaller here. Instead of the usual 25-foot x 100-foot parcel, they are 25 x 70 feet, meaning that you end up with 1,750 sqft instead of the 2,500 sqft. This means that setback requirements will limit the amount a building can occupy of a given parcel. 

Anytime you want to expand outside of the 3-D building envelope, you will likely face a lot of neighborhood pushback. It’s a tradition here. Navigating that process can take years and deliberations and neighbor demands can be absurd, passionate and frustrating. Oh, and if you wanted to add a garage where none had existed before? May someone show you some mercy. 

You have a mix of Victorians, Edwardians and many Sunset-style, Junior 5 homes. The neighborhood’s history stretches way back when to when Señor Bernal and Señor Noe used the area as their ranches. Bernal Hill was where some earthquake shakes were built after the great 1906 earthquake and where many of the people who rebuilt San Francisco lived too. The neighborhood was also to home to some of the countless people who worked in the shipyards near where Dogpatch is currently. Considering the tradition of able-bodied residents, you may encounter unusual or makeshift elements that work for some reason but wouldn’t be anywhere near legal under today’s building standards. 

There is a long legacy of interfamily ownership where parents would pass along their homes to children or where properties are owned by family members. While true in many parts of San Francisco, the trend seems to be stronger here for some reason. 

Prices can vary wildly and the dollars-per-square foot metric is less useful here as finish quality, space utilization, views and proximity to neighborhood amenities make more of a difference. The price variation between one of Bernal, say on the North Slope with epic views of the skyline and proximity to Precita Park will be very different from a similar home sitting within earshot of the freeway. 

Be prepared for funky layouts crammed into smaller spaces on the one hand but also be prepared for surprises and quirkiness. It’s kind of like San Francisco in general. 

Being named as Redfin’s Number 1 neighborhood in the country among others, this eclectic neighborhood is bisected by Bernal Hill — the favorite stomping grounds of our four-legged friends who bark from time to time — into the North Slope and South Slope. And the South Slope has a natural division at Cortland Street, the main commercial street for area. To the west in that area is Holly Park and to the east you’ll closer to 101/280. Prices have surged of late and it’s common to see single-family houses with 3-bedrooms and updated bathrooms with parking close above $2M with bigger homes with views push higher. Parcels are mostly smaller here at just 25 x 70 ft, which limits how big the homes can get. Other limitations are neighborhood NIMBYs and site conditions. Beware the freeway noise, slope and neighbors. Because of the wide variety the area is known fore, we’ve really broken Bernal down:

A + H. Manchester Hill/Mirabel — otherwise west of Folsom on the Precita side. More rental buildings than rest of area the closer to Mission and Cesar Chavez. Victorians and other styles on Mirabel, more have been redone, but some need TLC. Some streets are narrower, tight turns curvy. Some houses lack parking, others have amazing views. Owner remodels will have high quality finishes.  

B + C. North Slope: Precita Park/Bessie/Alabama/Folsom — Micro-Hot Area. Cute and charming park has been the popular anchor of the area. The once-rough park is now home to ruffs of Raffi’s kind with off-leash play area, kids play area. Popular café, Michelin-rated restaurant and walkable proximity to Mission District and freeways make this popular. Houses are medium sized with more luxe renovations; some fixers remain, some turned into condos. Big views from Ripley.    

C + D + E. Peralta/Mullen and Montcalm Curviness. Curvy, narrow streets. Some homes have skyline views over the Mission District. Mix of smaller homes (older and more recent), 2-unit buildings, wider homes on irregular-shaped parcels because of topography. Homes will try to go higher to take advantage of views. Powerlines still here. More of an ad hoc feel the higher and more east you go. 

H, I. West Slope: Virginia, Coleridge, Prospect and Coso complex — west border to Mission but quieter nonetheless, more walkable nearer to Mission Street. Esmeralda Steps draws people. Mixed inventory: Victorians (some split into condos), Junior 5s, cottages. Tree-lined, curvy and narrower streets, some are one-way. Some homes have views. Some modern stunner remodels with sweeping west views. Underground power.

South Slope. The large swath north of Cortland, east of Bocana to Prentiss as bounded by Bernal Hill to the north. Narrower treelined streets (similar to Virginia-Coleridge complex). Diverse mix of people and houses, Victorian, Junior 5, Mid-century, modern in-fill. Remodels can be luxe because parcel and house sizes limited. Potential views. Layouts can be odd. Underground power impacts landscape positively. Cortland and Bernal Hill are anchors to life. Arguably most Bernal of Bernal.    

G. Cortland Corridor. This is the main drag for the neighborhood. With butchers, drink stores, dumpling houses and restaurants, a grocery store, coffee shops and a great pet shop all call Cortland home. 

E. Holladay Quiet area, more removed and eastern views but 101 is right below elevation; freeway noise. All houses were picked up and moved here in the 40s/50s/60s when freeway was built. Lower prices.

Banks Houses — Banks has among the steepest grades in the city. Hilly and curvy (hence why this was developed later) with potential for views. For homes that look to east there are views but a more industrial outlook towards the old shipyards, but East Bay beyond that. Houses are choppier and denser for older stock, mix of the Junior 5 and variants. New flipped houses increasing. Be prepared for surprises especially in well-remodeled homes.  

J. South of Cortland before Ogden. Not as cute as the South Slope the streets are tighter and the houses sit higher as the hill continues its slope down to the freeway in the valley below. Because the echo reverberates freeway noise becomes an issue. Large public school here so there is more traffic, and the school breaks up the neighborhood feel. 

South of Ogden and it can feel like a different world. We have the Rule of Ogden and are skeptical of homes here because of varying property conditions and upkeep. Streets can be too steep, noise too loud. Cars can be on blocks, the street is just a gravel road. But it’s not all bleak as there are some pleasant surprises, we just have to find them. 

L. Richland/Crescent — Previously a ‘rough’ part of the neighborhood, the street is gentrifying with values starting to rise, but quality can be very mixed. Issues with freeway noise and remoteness. Non-remodeled homes can have quirks, deferred maintenance. Grab bag neighborhood.  

I. Holly Park Cuteness, Depending… Cute houses centered around park, quality varies depending on which spoke off of the park. Fixers will be in demand. Houses are smaller in size. Higher prices for done homes, but quality will depend on which part of circle you’re at. Housing project toward western part; fire station at Southwest corner. Character changes towards Mission and Crescent. Nicer towards Cortland.   

L. St. Mary’s Park. The entire area is shaped like a bell. Off of Mission Street via St. Mary’s, this planned development features bigger stucco houses with art deco/Spanish details, some of which have been remodeled. Freeway noise is a concern, especially on Justin. Access to both 280 and 101 is easier. Also, before you know it you can be in Silver Terrace or the Portola. Cute houses, more isolated neighborhood.  

The Bosworth Tail. This is the strange area where Glen Park, Bernal and Mission Terrace intersect that will somehow intersect with Sunnyside, Balboa Park and Ocean Avenue before too long! Freeway noise is the biggest concern; so get good windows. More functional area than not. Neighborhoods are technically walkable but you have to go under the freeway or over it on the Richland bridge.