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5536 California St

Lake Street, SF 94121 1377023 2 units · 2 fl · 1922

This building has a higher-than-average number of open problems nearby. Few open issues; problems get fixed quickly. A reasonable bet for a smooth tenancy.

NOVs (7y) vs. neighborhood
Compared to a typical building in Lake Street
At or below average
avg 0.6
0
FewerMore

This building has 0 novs (7y), at or below the Lake Street average of 0.6.

Rent & eviction protection

Is 5536 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 1922
2 or more units
2 units
Property type
Multi-Family Residential
Zoning
RM1
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
Units2
Floors2
Year built1922
Total area3,094 sq ft
Property typeMulti-Family Residential
Tax statusHome Owners
Blocklot1377023
Ownership

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

Owner name
Cai, Yue Lei & Hao Zhou Lei
Mailing address
5538 California St San Francisco CA 94121
Last sale
101994

Landlord portfolio

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

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Augrented Insights
Initial analysis

The two-unit multi-family residential building at 5536 California Street, located in the Lake-Presidio neighborhood, is a two-story flats and duplex structure built in 1922 and currently owned by Yue Lei Cai and Hao Zhou Lei. The building's maintenance history shows attention to infrastructure upkeep, with notable improvements including a complete reroofing project completed in 2001 at a cost of $5,800 and the installation of fire-rated walls in 1998 to enhance safety by separating social and bathroom areas.

The property has experienced recurring issues with street cleanliness and waste management in recent years, with multiple reports of human waste and general garbage requiring attention between 2020 and 2025. These incidents, while not directly related to the building's internal conditions, may impact the surrounding environment and resident comfort. The area has also faced parking enforcement challenges, with three documented cases of driveway blocking between 2023 and 2024, though enforcement officers were unable to locate the offending vehicles in each instance. A defaced parking sign was reported and addressed in August 2023, and there was one instance of an abandoned vehicle in July 2023, which was resolved when the registered owner was notified of the expired registration issue. The building's permit history suggests attention to both structural and safety improvements over the past two decades, with no records of more recent major renovations or permit applications.

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

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Risk rating

How 5536 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
62th percentile

Out of 660 buildings in this neighborhood, 251 are predicted to be safer.

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

Construction spend, owner's portfolio

Estimated permit value across all of this owner's buildings.

DBI complaint rate, owner's portfolio

Per-building complaint rate across the owner's portfolio.

Estimated permit spend (past 7 years)

Dollar value of permits pulled at this address — large recent spend can signal deferred-maintenance catch-up.

12-Month severity forecast
No violation 82.1%
Moderate concern 13.4%
Severe concern 4.5%
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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The story over time

5536 California St event timeline

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

2023
311 Request Aug 12
Sign - defaced
Other Parking Type - Defaced; support - OK
311 RequestJun 04
Bulky items

See all 3 events

Full history back to 2023 — violations, complaints, permits, buyouts, and fire incidents.

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Every record we have

Full data for 5536 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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