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450-452 Castro St

Eureka Valley/Dolores Heights, SF 94114 2647007 7 units · 3 fl · 1908

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 Eureka Valley/Dolores Heights

Above average

avg 1.3

2

FewerMore

This building has 2 novs (7y), above the Eureka Valley/Dolores Heights average of 1.3.

12-Month Maintenance Forecast

78%

(risk — lower is better)

Notable issues

Estimated probability of a DBI violation or complaint in the next 12 months.

7-YEAR TREND Violations + complaints / yr

'20

'21

'22

'23

'24

'25

'26

'27*

*Next year, projected from recent activity and predicted risk.

7-Year Historical Counts

2

NOVs (7y)

4

DBI Complaints (7y)

53

311 Calls (7y)

0

Fire Incidents

0

2nd NOVs

1

Dir. Hearings

0

City Atty

4

Permits (7y)

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Rent & eviction protection

Is 450-452 Castro 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 1908

2 or more units

7 units

Property type

Multi-Family Residential

Zoning

CASTRO

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

Units	7
Floors	3
Year built	1908
Total area	5,750 sq ft
Property type	Multi-Family Residential
Tax status	None
Blocklot	2647007

Ownership

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

Owner name

Strain Investments

Mailing address

George J Strain 11 Cypress Ave Kentfield CA 94904

Last sale

072005

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.

450 Castro St, San Francisco, CA 94114

452 Castro St, San Francisco, CA 94114

Augrented Insights

Initial analysis

The 7-unit multi-family residential building at 450-452 Castro Street, owned by Strain Investments, is a 3-story structure built in 1908 located in the Eureka Valley/Dolores Heights neighborhood. The building has undergone significant safety upgrades in recent years, most notably completing a mandatory soft-story retrofit in 2016 (at a cost of $95,000) to improve seismic resilience. A major fire alarm system upgrade was recently completed in October 2024 at a cost of nearly $24,000, bringing the building's safety systems into compliance with current fire codes. Unit #1 is currently undergoing renovation (as of August 2024) including kitchen and bathroom remodeling, with associated plumbing and electrical work totaling $60,000.

The building has a documented history of maintenance and safety concerns, particularly regarding fire safety and egress issues. Between 2002-2003, several fire safety violations were recorded, including problems with egress obstructions, exit doors, fire extinguishers, and smoke enclosure doors, all of which were abated by February 2003. More recent concerns have centered around the commercial storefront portion of the property, with multiple complaints about vacancy and appearance between 2020 and 2023. A significant complaint in May 2023 described the storefront as looking "derelict" with painted-over windows, graffiti, and debris in the alley entryway, which remains an active case as of October 2023. The building has also experienced periodic maintenance issues, such as a 2015 complaint about lack of hot water and heat. While historical fire safety violations primarily related to egress issues have been addressed, the building continues to experience challenges with its commercial space management and exterior maintenance, as evidenced by recent 311 calls regarding garbage, debris, and illegal postings in 2024.

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

Risk rating

How 450-452 Castro 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

3th percentile

Out of 1278 buildings in this neighborhood, 1240 are predicted to be safer.

RiskiestSafest

Predicted 12-month outcome

22%

No DBI
violation

78%

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.

DBI tenant complaints (past 7 years)

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

Number of units

The number of units affects how the model reads complaint and violation totals — more units means more potential sources.

Director's hearings (past 7 years)

Director's hearings are escalated enforcement actions for buildings that haven't resolved violations — a serious signal.

12-Month severity forecast

No violation 11.6%

Moderate concern 76.2%

Severe concern 12.2%

Estimated probability of receiving a DBI Notice of Violation in the next 12 months at each severity level. Model: full_hgb_balanced.

Apartment reviews

450-452 Castro St apartment reviews

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The story over time

450-452 Castro St event timeline

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

2024

Building Permit Oct 03

Upgrade existing fire alarm system to comply with sffc section 1103.7.6.1

$18,300 · Complete

Electrical PermitSep 27

Online electrical permit: 60 of buildings of 6 dwelling units or less. modification of an existing fire alarm system by upgrading the fire panel, update all existing devices to be compatible with new facp and provide low frequency sounders in all sleeping areas to meet

See all 13 events

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

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Every record we have

Full data for 450-452 Castro St apartments

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

What this is

Permits issued by the SF Department of Building Inspection for new construction, alterations, and repairs. Includes estimated cost and current permit status.

Permit #	Description	Cost	Filed	Status
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What this is

Plumbing permit applications filed with the SF Department of Building Inspection. Covers plumbing installation, repair, and replacement work.

Permit #	Description	Filed	Status
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What this is

Electrical permit applications filed with the SF Department of Building Inspection. Covers electrical wiring, panel upgrades, and related work.

Permit #	Description	Filed	Status
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What this is

Notices of Violation issued by the SF Department of Building Inspection for code violations. Unresolved notices can escalate to legal action.

Date Filed	Complaint #	Description	Item	Category	Status
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What this is

Complaints filed with the SF Department of Building Inspection about code violations. Tracks the complaint lifecycle from filing through abatement or referral.

Complaint #	Date Filed	Date Abated	Division	Status	Description
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What this is

Planning Department project entitlements — discretionary review, conditional use, variances, and environmental review for this parcel.

Address	Opened	Closed	Status	Description	Applicant
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What this is

Planning Department administrative and compliance records that are not full project entitlements — pre-application meetings, code violations, and referrals.

Address	Opened	Closed	Status	Description	Applicant
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What this is

SFFD fire incidents geo-joined to this parcel. Covers structure fires, alarms, and emergency responses with injury and fatality counts.

Date	Situation	Civilian Injuries	Civilian Fatalities
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What this is

Fire code violations issued by the SFFD. Tracks corrective actions required and resolution status for fire safety code enforcement.

Violation Date	Description	Corrective Action	Status	Close Date
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What this is

Fire code complaints received by the SF Fire Department geo-joined to this parcel. Includes complaint type, disposition, and outcome.

Received	Description	Disposition Date	Disposition
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What this is

SF 311 service requests geo-joined to this parcel. Includes maintenance complaints, street/sidewalk issues, and quality-of-life requests.

Opened	Type	Agency	Category	Details	Status
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What this is

Buildings subject to SF's mandatory soft-story seismic retrofit program. Unreinforced multi-story wood-frame buildings must meet compliance tiers.

Tier	Status
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What this is

Tenant buyout (Ellis Act pre-cursor) agreements recorded with the SF Rent Board. Tracks amounts paid to tenants to vacate rent-controlled units.

Disclosure Date	Buyout Date	Amount	Tenants
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Cancel anytime · Data sourced from SF Open Data, DBI, SFFD, SF Rent Board & Planning