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655 Pacific Ave

Financial District North, SF 94133 0177022 57 units · 6 fl · 1950

This building has far more open problems than almost any other in the neighborhood. Renters here report frequent, slow-to-fix problems. Get repair promises in writing and check the unit before signing.

NOVs (7y) vs. neighborhood
Compared to a typical building in Financial District North
Above average
avg 3.2
8
FewerMore

This building has 8 novs (7y), above the Financial District North average of 3.2.

Rent & eviction protection

Is 655 Pacific Ave rent-controlled?

San Francisco's Rent Ordinance caps rent increases and provides eviction protection for most residential units built before 1979 with 2+ units. Here's how this building scores.

Built before 1979
Built 1950
2 or more units
57 units
Property type
Multi-Family Residential
Zoning
RM4
Likely rent-controlled. Building age and unit count suggest this property falls under San Francisco's Rent Ordinance.

Based on SF Assessor records. Not legal advice — confirm with the SF Rent Board.

Building characteristics
Units57
Floors6
Year built1950
Total area
Property typeMulti-Family Residential
Tax statusNone
Blocklot0177022
Ownership

Registered owner per SF Assessor-Recorder (secured roll).

Owner name
Ping Yuen Lp
Mailing address
Chinatown Cdc 1525 Grant Ave San Francisco CA 94133
Last sale
000000

Landlord portfolio

Other SF properties this owner holds, with risk grades for each.

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Augrented Insights
Initial analysis

Located in San Francisco's Financial District North, 655 Pacific Avenue is a six-story, 57-unit multi-family residential building constructed in 1950 and currently owned by Ping Yuen LP. The property has undergone numerous significant upgrades and maintenance activities in recent years, including multiple boiler replacements (most recently in 2023), solar power system installation (2018), and emergency generator upgrades (2018). The building has maintained active compliance with various safety requirements, though there have been recurring issues with boiler permit renewals, as evidenced by multiple complaints between 2016 and 2019.

Recent developments include a sound level verification project initiated in February 2024 and multiple infrastructure improvements such as plumbing fixture renovations in 2017, fire sprinkler system upgrades, and emergency systems testing in 2018. The property has experienced some recent maintenance challenges, with active complaints filed in 2024 regarding a malfunctioning refrigerator and earlier issues in 2020 and 2021 involving power outages and plumbing problems. A series of fire safety inspections throughout 2023-2024 resulted in several violations, including an open violation related to sleeping area requirements from October 2023 and past violations regarding alarm systems and sprinklers, though most have been corrected or abated. The building's management has generally responded to maintenance issues, as evidenced by the completion of numerous building, plumbing, and electrical permits, though there are currently some active health and safety concerns being addressed, including a public health inspection initiated in January 2025.

AI-generated · may contain errors · check the source data tables below

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Risk rating

How 655 Pacific Ave's risk score is calculated

We trained a model on 7 years of SF DBI inspection data — notice of violation filings, complaint history, and owner track records. It estimates the probability that DBI inspectors will issue a Notice of Violation at this address in the next 12 months. Lower % = safer.

What the score means for you

Grade A–B — Low risk

DBI rarely finds violations here. Strong maintenance history and a clean complaint record.

Grade C — Moderate risk

Some past violations or complaints on record. Worth asking the landlord about any open issues before signing.

Grade D–F — High risk

Elevated violation and complaint history. DBI has found issues here before and is statistically likely to again.

Neighborhood percentile
6th percentile

Out of 145 buildings in this neighborhood, 136 are predicted to be safer.

RiskiestSafest
Predicted 12-month outcome
11%
No DBI
violation
89%
DBI violation
likely
Model explanation

What's driving this score

The three data points that most influenced this building's risk rating — ranked by the weight the model placed on each one.

Number of units

The number of units affects how the model reads complaint and violation totals — more units means more potential sources.

DBI tenant complaints (past 7 years)

Formal complaints tenants filed with DBI about this building over 7 years.

Neighborhood location

Precise location is a proxy for neighborhood-level risk — some SF blocks have systematically higher DBI activity.

12-Month severity forecast
No violation 5.2%
Moderate concern 86.6%
Severe concern 8.2%
Estimated probability of receiving a DBI Notice of Violation in the next 12 months at each severity level. Model: full_hgb_balanced.
Apartment reviews

655 Pacific Ave apartment reviews

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The story over time

655 Pacific Ave event timeline

Violations, complaints, fire incidents, permits, and buyouts — most recent records in order.

2025
DBI Complaint Oct 07
Date last observed: 06-oct-25; time last observed: every day.; floor: 1; exact location: main bldg; building type: residence/dwelling ; additional information: there are rats freely running around the building. my unit seems safe for now, but everywhere i turn there are rats. not mice, but big rats. i tried to report to dph but this was the only reporting i could find. ;
Housing Inspection Services
Building Violation (NOV)Sep 25
Building violation

See all 19 events

Full history back to 2021 — violations, complaints, permits, buyouts, and fire incidents.

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Every record we have

Full data for 655 Pacific Ave apartments

13 SF public datasets for this parcel — permits, violations, complaints, fire records, 311 calls, planning records, and buyouts.

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Cancel anytime · Data sourced from SF Open Data, DBI, SFFD, SF Rent Board & Planning

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