Free SF apartment background check

48-58 Lafayette St

South of Market, SF 94103 3511040 6 units · 3 fl · 1912

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

NOVs (7y) vs. neighborhood
Compared to a typical building in South of Market
At or below average
avg 3.3
0
FewerMore

This building has 0 novs (7y), at or below the South of Market average of 3.3.

Rent & eviction protection

Is 48-58 Lafayette 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 1912
2 or more units
6 units
Property type
Multi-Family Residential
Zoning
RED
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 built1912
Total area7,200 sq ft
Property typeMulti-Family Residential
Tax statusNone
Blocklot3511040
Ownership

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

Owner name
Lum Karen
Mailing address
3201 Balboa St San Francisco CA 94121
Last sale
030519

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.

58 Lafayette St, San Francisco, CA 94103
56 Lafayette St, San Francisco, CA 94103
54 Lafayette St, San Francisco, CA 94103
50 Lafayette St, San Francisco, CA 94103
52 Lafayette St, San Francisco, CA 94103
48 Lafayette St, San Francisco, CA 94103
Augrented Insights
Initial analysis

The 6-unit, 3-story multi-family residential building at 48-58 Lafayette Street, owned by Karen Lum, was constructed in 1912 and has undergone several significant changes and faced various challenges over the years. Most notably, the building has achieved compliance with its mandatory soft-story seismic retrofit requirements (Tier 3) as of 2024, completing the work and receiving its Certificate of Final Completion (CFC). Recent building improvements include bathroom renovations in 2021 (including drywall work and flooring updates), and substantial unit renovations in 2018 that addressed multiple violations, including electrical rewiring, plumbing updates, and HVAC system improvements.

The property has experienced several recurring issues over the years, particularly notable between 2018-2020 when multiple code violations and complaints were filed regarding inadequate heating, electrical problems, plumbing issues, mold, lead paint concerns, and rodent infestation. Many of these violations were addressed through the 2018 renovation work, including the replacement of the furnace, water heater, electrical components, and repairs to the bathroom and kitchen. There was also a significant water damage incident in 2020, affecting ground floor and basement bathrooms, though this was ultimately addressed. Recent activity at the property includes several tenant buyouts, with the most recent occurring in December 2024 involving two tenants at 58 Lafayette Street for $10,000. While the building now appears to be in better structural and functional condition, with completed safety upgrades, it has faced ongoing challenges with building maintenance and environmental issues as evidenced by numerous 311 calls in 2024 regarding garbage, debris, and sidewalk maintenance.

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 48-58 Lafayette 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
29th percentile

Out of 430 buildings in this neighborhood, 305 are predicted to be safer.

RiskiestSafest
Predicted 12-month outcome
47%
No DBI
violation
53%
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 size

Total floor area — a proxy for building scale and the number of systems (plumbing, electrical, HVAC) that can fail.

Neighborhood (ZIP code)

The ZIP code captures local housing market and enforcement patterns that affect all buildings in the area.

Number of units

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

12-Month severity forecast
No violation 25.5%
Moderate concern 61.9%
Severe concern 12.6%
Estimated probability of receiving a DBI Notice of Violation in the next 12 months at each severity level. Model: full_hgb_balanced.
Apartment reviews

48-58 Lafayette St 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

48-58 Lafayette St event timeline

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

2024
Tenant Buyout Dec 09
Tenant buyout · $10,000
2 tenant(s)

See all 6 events

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

Unlock complete timeline
Every record we have

Full data for 48-58 Lafayette St 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 48-58 Lafayette St
Get alerted the moment a new violation or complaint is filed.