Free SF apartment background check

649-653 Castro St

Eureka Valley/Dolores Heights, SF 94114 3602068 3 units · 3 fl · 1890

This building has more problems than most buildings in this neighborhood. Few open issues; problems get fixed quickly. A reasonable bet for a smooth tenancy.

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.

Rent & eviction protection

Is 649-653 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 1890
2 or more units
3 units
Property type
Multi-Family Residential
Zoning
RH3
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
Units3
Floors3
Year built1890
Total area4,704 sq ft
Property typeMulti-Family Residential
Tax statusNone
Blocklot3602068
Ownership

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

Owner name
Chu Lvg Tr
Mailing address
Chu Norman & Sylvia Ttees 181 Los Robles Dr Burlingame CA 94010
Last sale
022113

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.

649 Castro St, San Francisco, CA 94114
651 Castro St, San Francisco, CA 94114
653 Castro St, San Francisco, CA 94114
Augrented Insights
Initial analysis

The property at 649-653 Castro Street is a three-unit, three-story multi-family residential building constructed in 1890, currently owned by Chu Living Trust. The building has undergone several significant renovations and faced multiple compliance issues over the years. Most notably, there is currently an active complaint from December 2021 regarding heating issues (complaint #202185408) and an active plumbing violation from the same period. The building has seen substantial bathroom improvements, including the addition of new half-bathrooms and renovations to existing facilities in 2010-2011, though there were previous issues with unauthorized bathroom additions, particularly in 2007 when a complaint was filed about an unpermitted bathroom installation.

The property has a documented history of deck-related maintenance issues, with multiple permits from 2002-2003 addressing dry rot repairs to the rear decks across all three levels. Electrical improvements have been made over the years, including a ceiling fan installation in 2016 and kitchen rewiring in 2010. Earlier building violations from 2002-2007 involved various issues including stair maintenance, plumbing problems, and concerns about combustible storage, though these have been categorized as not active. The building's most recent history includes several 311 calls in 2023-2024 related to street cleaning and debris removal, though these are external to the building itself. The property's permit history demonstrates ongoing maintenance and improvement work, though the presence of active complaints suggests some current compliance issues remain unresolved.

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 649-653 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
28th percentile

Out of 1278 buildings in this neighborhood, 920 are predicted to be safer.

RiskiestSafest
Predicted 12-month outcome
61%
No DBI
violation
39%
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.

Neighborhood location

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

NOV rate, owner's portfolio

Per-building NOV rate across everything this owner manages — high rates signal pattern neglect.

12-Month severity forecast
No violation 49.2%
Moderate concern 38.5%
Severe concern 12.3%
Estimated probability of receiving a DBI Notice of Violation in the next 12 months at each severity level. Model: full_hgb_balanced.
Apartment reviews

649-653 Castro 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

649-653 Castro St event timeline

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

2023
311 Request Apr 26
Bulky items
Boxed or Bagged Items
311 RequestMar 24
Bulky items

See all 5 events

Full history back to 2021 — violations, complaints, permits, buyouts, and fire incidents.

Unlock complete timeline
Every record we have

Full data for 649-653 Castro 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 649-653 Castro St
Get alerted the moment a new violation or complaint is filed.