Free SF apartment background check

12-20 Santa Rosa Ave

Mission Terrace, SF 94112 6796012 3 units · 2 fl · 1900

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 Mission Terrace
At or below average
avg 2.3
0
FewerMore

This building has 0 novs (7y), at or below the Mission Terrace average of 2.3.

Rent & eviction protection

Is 12-20 Santa Rosa 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 1900
2 or more units
3 units
Property type
Multi-Family Residential
Zoning
RH1
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
Floors2
Year built1900
Total area2,535 sq ft
Property typeMulti-Family Residential
Tax statusHome Owners
Blocklot6796012
Ownership

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

Owner name
Tong Wai Jer
Mailing address
12 - 20 Santa Rosa Ave San Francisco CA 94112
Last sale
080415

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.

12 Santa Rosa Ave, San Francisco, CA 94112
20 Santa Rosa Ave, San Francisco, CA 94112
Augrented Insights
Initial analysis

The 12-20 Santa Rosa Avenue property is a two-story, three-unit multi-family residential building located in Mission Terrace, constructed in 1900 and currently owned by Tong Wai Jer. The building has a concerning history of unauthorized unit conversions, with multiple complaints and enforcement actions between 1997 and 2009 regarding an illegal ground floor unit, and more recently, an active complaint from 1997 about an illegal basement unit. The property has experienced significant habitability issues in the past, particularly in 1995, with multiple tenant complaints about inadequate ventilation, water leaks, electrical issues, and safety concerns including lack of proper egress in bedrooms. While some of these historical issues were addressed, as evidenced by the removal of the illegal ground floor unit in 2000, the building's maintenance history shows recurring infrastructure concerns.

Most recent concerns center around external maintenance issues, particularly with the sidewalk, as evidenced by multiple 311 calls in 2024 regarding tree root damage to the sidewalk. There have also been recent incidents involving blocked driveways and street cleaning matters, though these are more related to external property management than building conditions. The most pressing current issue appears to be the ongoing tree root damage affecting the sidewalk, which remains an open concern as of late 2024. The building's permit history shows some maintenance and improvement work, including kitchen and bathroom remodeling in 1985, installation of a garage driveway in 2006, and efforts to address illegal units, though many of these permits are now expired. The property's records reveal a pattern of historical maintenance challenges and unauthorized modifications, with the most recent issues primarily relating to exterior conditions rather than internal unit habitability.

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 12-20 Santa Rosa 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
22th percentile

Out of 149 buildings in this neighborhood, 116 are predicted to be safer.

RiskiestSafest
Predicted 12-month outcome
51%
No DBI
violation
49%
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.

Neighborhood location

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

Neighborhood (ZIP code)

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

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 43.7%
Moderate concern 32.4%
Severe concern 23.9%
Estimated probability of receiving a DBI Notice of Violation in the next 12 months at each severity level. Model: full_hgb_balanced.
Apartment reviews

12-20 Santa Rosa 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

Create account

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

12-20 Santa Rosa Ave event timeline

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

2023
311 Request Feb 28
General cleaning
Other Loose Garbage

See all 1 events

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

Unlock complete timeline
Every record we have

Full data for 12-20 Santa Rosa 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.

Search another address Get full report
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
Most Popular Current plan

Renter

For the weeks when the stakes are highest

$10/mo

Billed $120/year — save $24 vs monthly

  • Unlimited basic reports
  • 5 premium AI reports per month
  • Download PDF & Excel reports
  • Full public records (200 rows per dataset)
  • Full event timeline — every year of history
  • Landlord portfolio & ownership insights
Start Your Search

Less than $0.34/day. Cancel anytime.

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

Watch 12-20 Santa Rosa Ave
Get alerted the moment a new violation or complaint is filed.