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814 California St

Nob Hill, SF 94108 0243008 21 units · 3 fl · 1913

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 Nob Hill
Above average
avg 2.4
5
FewerMore

This building has 5 novs (7y), above the Nob Hill average of 2.4.

Rent & eviction protection

Is 814 California St 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 1913
2 or more units
21 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
Units21
Floors3
Year built1913
Total area12,009 sq ft
Property typeMulti-Family Residential
Tax statusNone
Blocklot0243008
Ownership

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

Owner name
Sf 814 California Street Ll
Mailing address
Steven C. Thrower 1 Bush St Ste 900 San Francisco CA 94104
Last sale
101512

Landlord portfolio

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

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Augrented Insights
Initial analysis

The 21-unit, 3-story apartment building at 814 California St in Nob Hill, constructed in 1913, has undergone significant modernization and maintenance over recent years, particularly focusing on unit upgrades and safety systems. Most notably, between 2019 and 2021, the property completed comprehensive washer/dryer installation and replacement projects in multiple units (3, 5, 14, 15, 17, 19, and 21), along with bathroom and kitchen remodels in select units, with associated costs ranging from $5,000 to $36,000 per project. A critical infrastructure improvement was the $40,000 upgrade to the fire alarm system in 2019 to comply with SFBC requirements, followed by the installation of new tankless water heaters and one storage tank.

The building's safety record shows attention to both fire safety and structural integrity, including the replacement of a fire sprinkler backflow system in 2022 and successful completion of Tier 2 soft-story seismic retrofitting. While there were several building code violations noted in 2008 related to a foundation crack and in 2012 for various maintenance issues (including electrical conduit repair, garbage area sanitation, and others), these were all resolved by May 2012. Recent inspections and complaints have been relatively minimal, with some minor issues in 2021 (kitchen power and construction-related smoke) and occasional concerns about garbage and debris on the premises. The property has experienced multiple fire system-related false alarms and malfunctions over the years, but no serious fire incidents have been recorded, and all related violations have been promptly addressed. Recent 2024 fire safety violations regarding the alarm system and UL certification were issued but are currently under review through the hearing process.

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

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Risk rating

How 814 California St'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
4th percentile

Out of 1125 buildings in this neighborhood, 1080 are predicted to be safer.

RiskiestSafest
Predicted 12-month outcome
15%
No DBI
violation
85%
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.

Building size

Total floor area — a proxy for building scale and the number of systems (plumbing, electrical, HVAC) that can fail.

DBI tenant complaints (past 7 years)

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

12-Month severity forecast
No violation 6.0%
Moderate concern 88.0%
Severe concern 6.1%
Estimated probability of receiving a DBI Notice of Violation in the next 12 months at each severity level. Model: full_hgb_balanced.
Apartment reviews

814 California St apartment reviews

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The story over time

814 California St event timeline

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

2026
Planning Record Mar 03
COMPLAINT CLOSED: No Violation. Planning Code Section 604(c)(1)(3) exempts Temporary sale or lease Signs from permit and Planning approval. COMPLAINT SUBMITTED: Multiple properties. Brick + Timber advertising wall signs
Closed - No Violation
Building PermitJan 29
Fire alarm upgrade to comply with sffc 1103.7.6.1 in non-sprinkled building.

See all 30 events

Full history back to 2020 — violations, complaints, permits, buyouts, and fire incidents.

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Every record we have

Full data for 814 California St 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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