Free SF apartment background check

43 Cole St

North Panhandle, SF 94117 1190001A 6 units · 3 fl · 1915

This building has significantly more problems than most nearby buildings. A handful of unresolved issues. Worth a careful walk-through and pointed questions.

NOVs (7y) vs. neighborhood
Compared to a typical building in North Panhandle
At or below average
avg 1.7
0
FewerMore

This building has 0 novs (7y), at or below the North Panhandle average of 1.7.

Rent & eviction protection

Is 43 Cole 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 1915
2 or more units
6 units
Property type
Multi-Family Residential
Zoning
RH3
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
Units6
Floors3
Year built1915
Total area6,594 sq ft
Property typeMulti-Family Residential
Tax statusNone
Blocklot1190001A
Ownership

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

Owner name
Pjl Investment Llc
Mailing address
43 Cole St San Francisco CA 94117
Last sale
050516

Landlord portfolio

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

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Augrented Insights
Initial analysis

The three-story, six-unit apartment building at 43 Cole Street, constructed in 1915 and currently owned by PJL Investment LLC, has undergone significant recent improvements focused on safety and modernization. Most notably, in 2023, the building received extensive fire safety upgrades including a new fire alarm system with addressable components and smoke detection throughout, along with the installation of a comprehensive fire sprinkler system in 2022 covering ground floor areas. The property has also completed mandatory seismic retrofitting as a soft-story building, demonstrating compliance with safety requirements. Recent unit improvements include a $10,000 revision in 2023 to reconfigure layouts in units A and B, and historical records show consistent maintenance of individual units through plumbing and electrical upgrades between 2008-2021, including kitchen and bathroom improvements in multiple units.

Recent concerns have emerged regarding water-related issues, with multiple complaints filed in 2023 documenting leaks and moisture problems, including reports of mold and water damage. An April 2024 complaint noted problems with exterior doors and windows. The building's history includes a significant ADU conversion project completed in 2021, adding new living spaces to the ground floor. While the property has experienced various maintenance issues over the years, including balcony and stair repairs in the early 2000s and some violations related to smoke detectors and egress, these have generally been addressed through subsequent permits and repairs. The building has experienced several fire alarm system activations between 2012-2013, though these were primarily due to system malfunctions rather than actual fires, with no civilian injuries reported in any incidents.

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

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Risk rating

How 43 Cole 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
16th percentile

Out of 797 buildings in this neighborhood, 669 are predicted to be safer.

RiskiestSafest
Predicted 12-month outcome
49%
No DBI
violation
51%
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 35.2%
Moderate concern 45.8%
Severe concern 18.9%
Estimated probability of receiving a DBI Notice of Violation in the next 12 months at each severity level. Model: full_hgb_balanced.
Apartment reviews

43 Cole St apartment reviews

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The story over time

43 Cole St event timeline

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

2026
DBI Complaint Jun 16
Some of the unit¿s windows are broken and do not open at all, with rope suspensions that don¿t work or are missing. also some exposed outlets in both of the bedrooms. also the unit was not open for inspection from us, and we can see previous tenant¿s items still there. 2 of the 4 stove burners aren¿t working at this gas stove. in a bedroom there are 2 heaters and one of them doesn¿t work, same as the other room¿s heater. we haven¿t moved in yet but signed the lease today. right now we are not living there but do have access and can let the inspector in.
Housing Inspection Services
DBI ComplaintJun 16
Exposed outlets in both of the bedrooms of this 2bd unit. we haven¿t moved in yet but signed the lease today. right now we are not living there but do have access and can let the inspector in.

See all 16 events

Full history back to 2019 — violations, complaints, permits, buyouts, and fire incidents.

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Every record we have

Full data for 43 Cole 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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