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401 Central Ave

North Panhandle, SF 94117 1208007 31 units · 3 fl · 1904

This building has far more open problems than almost any other in the neighborhood. 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
Above average
avg 1.7
2
FewerMore

This building has 2 novs (7y), above the North Panhandle average of 1.7.

Rent & eviction protection

Is 401 Central 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 1904
2 or more units
31 units
Property type
Multi-Family Residential
Zoning
RM2
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
Units31
Floors3
Year built1904
Total area18,650 sq ft
Property typeMulti-Family Residential
Tax statusNone
Blocklot1208007
Ownership

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

Owner name
Poplar Tree Lp
Mailing address
Morse Frederick A Partner P O Box 13285 Oakland CA 94661
Last sale
000000

Landlord portfolio

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

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Multiple entrances & addresses

Included addresses

All street addresses sharing this blocklot that are covered by this report.

401 Central Ave, San Francisco, CA 94117
1600 Fell St, San Francisco, CA 94117
Augrented Insights
Initial analysis

The 31-unit, three-story multi-family residential building at 401 Central Ave in Park North, owned by Poplar Tree LP, has a storied history dating back to 1904. The building has undergone several significant modifications and maintenance work in recent years, including a completed soft-story seismic retrofit in 2016 (though currently facing associated violations), reroofing in 2022, and various plumbing upgrades including boiler and water tank replacements. Of particular concern are two recent fire safety violations from 2023 regarding sleeping area requirements and alarm system maintenance, though the latter was abated. The property has experienced recurring issues with boiler permit compliance, with an active violation as of April 2024 regarding an unpermitted boiler installation.

The building's maintenance history shows regular attention to infrastructure needs, including HVAC upgrades and window replacements, though some proposed improvements have encountered setbacks, such as a 2017 permit for adding units that was ultimately cancelled. Multiple routine housing inspections have been conducted over the years, though most were completed without significant findings. While the soft-story retrofit work has received some recognition as "Complete" with a Certificate of Final Completion (CFC) issued, the building remains on the Mandatory Soft Story Program list (as Tier II) with ongoing compliance requirements. The surrounding area has experienced typical urban challenges as evidenced by numerous recent 311 calls related to street cleaning, though these are primarily external to the building itself and have generally been resolved promptly.

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

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Risk rating

How 401 Central 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
5th percentile

Out of 797 buildings in this neighborhood, 757 are predicted to be safer.

RiskiestSafest
Predicted 12-month outcome
33%
No DBI
violation
67%
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.

Director's hearing rate, owner's portfolio

Per-building rate of director's hearings across the owner's portfolio.

12-Month severity forecast
No violation 14.4%
Moderate concern 77.8%
Severe concern 7.8%
Estimated probability of receiving a DBI Notice of Violation in the next 12 months at each severity level. Model: full_hgb_balanced.
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On the map

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The story over time

401 Central Ave event timeline

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

2026
311 Request Jun 17
Garbage and debris
other contained hazardous waste
311 RequestMay 13
Garbage and debris

See all 14 events

Full history back to 2022 — violations, complaints, permits, buyouts, and fire incidents.

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Every record we have

Full data for 401 Central Ave apartments

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

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