Free SF apartment background check

534-536 21St Ave

Central Richmond, SF 94121 1563034 2 units · 2 fl · 1909

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 Central Richmond
At or below average
avg 0.5
0
FewerMore

This building has 0 novs (7y), at or below the Central Richmond average of 0.5.

Rent & eviction protection

Is 534-536 21St 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 1909
2 or more units
2 units
Property type
Multi-Family Residential
Zoning
RH2
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 built1909
Total area3,423 sq ft
Property typeMulti-Family Residential
Tax statusHome Owners
Blocklot1563034
Ownership

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

Owner name
Bruce & Cynthia Seto Trust
Mailing address
Seto Bruce & Cynthia Truste 536 21St Ave San Francisco CA 94121
Last sale
121809

Landlord portfolio

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

Unlock complete report
Multiple entrances & addresses

Included addresses

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

534 21st Ave, San Francisco, CA 94121
536 21st Ave, San Francisco, CA 94121
Augrented Insights
Initial analysis

The 534-536 21st Avenue property is a two-unit, two-story multi-family residential building located in the Central Richmond neighborhood, constructed in 1909 and currently owned by the Bruce & Cynthia Seto Trust. The building has undergone several significant improvements and modifications over the past two decades, with particular attention to safety and accessibility. In 2005-2006, major electrical and safety updates were completed, including a complete rewiring with 200-amp service upgrade and the installation of a two-landing residential elevator. Structural improvements were made in 2009-2010, including hallway widening and moment frame column relocation, followed by a sewer repair. The building has a history of three complaints related to unauthorized work and modifications between 2005-2008, though all were eventually resolved, including a building without permits in 2008, unauthorized additions and neighborhood notification issues in 2006, and an unlawful demolition complaint in 2005.

Recent activity at the property has primarily been related to parking enforcement, with multiple citations issued between 2019-2024 for vehicles blocking driveways. The most recent incidents occurred in October 2024, with three enforcement actions taken for blocking driveways followed by two parking violations. Historical permits show several renewals and verifications of previous permits between 2005-2006, suggesting regular monitoring and completion of prior work. While the building experienced some compliance issues in the mid-2000s, no recent building complaints have been filed, and the property appears to have maintained its improvements through regular inspections and permitting processes. The structure has been primarily focused on safety, accessibility, and modernization, with no recorded complaints about living conditions or habitability issues in recent years.

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

Free account unlocks the full analysis — plus 2× more records across all data categories and the complete landlord portfolio.
Risk rating

How 534-536 21St 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
92th percentile

Out of 2250 buildings in this neighborhood, 180 are predicted to be safer.

RiskiestSafest
Predicted 12-month outcome
92%
No DBI
violation
8%
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.

Building age

Older buildings tend to have more maintenance challenges; SF's pre-1906 earthquake housing stock carries distinct risk.

Neighborhood location

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

Construction spend, owner's portfolio

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

12-Month severity forecast
No violation 79.9%
Moderate concern 15.6%
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.
Apartment reviews

534-536 21St Ave apartment reviews

Real experiences from people who have lived here. Share yours to help other renters decide.

Share your experience — Help other renters by leaving an honest apartment review

Loading reviews…

On the map

Compare nearby alternatives

This building and nearby alternatives, color-coded by risk level. Click any marker to explore.

Buildings nearby
Loading…
The story over time

534-536 21St Ave event timeline

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

No dated public records on file yet.
Every record we have

Full data for 534-536 21St Ave apartments

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

Still apartment hunting in SF?

Look up the next apartment before you sign

Search any SF address free — no account needed to see the risk rating.

Simple pricing

Get the complete picture

Every plan unlocks the complete report: all 13 SF datasets, full history, landlord portfolio, and PDF & Excel exports.

Report Bundle

For the buildings you're deciding on right now

$10 one-time

~$3.33 per building. No subscription ever. Each credit unlocks one building's premium report for 30 days.

  • 3 full AI-powered reports
  • Download PDF reports
  • Advanced safety analysis
  • Compare multiple buildings
  • Credits never expire until you use them
  • Full public records (200 rows per dataset)
Buy 3 Reports — $10

Apartment Hunter

For a wide search across many buildings

$39 one-time

30 reports — ~$1.30 each. No subscription ever.

  • 30 full AI-powered reports
  • Download PDF reports
  • Advanced safety analysis
  • Compare multiple buildings
  • Credits never expire until you use them
  • Full public records (200 rows per dataset)
Buy 30 Reports — $39

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

Watch 534-536 21St Ave
Get alerted the moment a new violation or complaint is filed.