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Lone Mountain, San Francisco: Homes, Streets & Real Estate Guide

By Matthew Martinez, Founder, CEO & Managing Broker, Diamond Real Estate Group. California DRE #01869679.

Lone Mountain is the hill crowned by the northern half of the University of San Francisco’s main campus, together with the residential blocks around it between Geary Boulevard and Golden Gate Park, from Arguello Boulevard east to about Masonic Avenue. Most of its single-family houses were built in a short burst in the late 1930s, alongside older flats and a sizable number of condominiums. The San Francisco MLS lists it as neighborhood 1G of SF District 1.

It is the smallest-lot neighborhood in the district and the one with the most varied history: a cemetery district in the nineteenth century, a college hilltop for most of the twentieth, and a mix of row houses, flats and apartment buildings today. This page covers that history as it affects property, the housing stock in the Assessor’s records, zoning, the hillside hazard map, transit and preparing a sale.

Lone Mountain homes for sale

Lone Mountain market report

From cemetery hill to University Terrace

The Spanish called the hill El Divisadero, a point from which one can see far.

In 1854 it became the site of Lone Mountain Cemetery, which opened on May 30 of that year and was renamed Laurel Hill Cemetery in 1867. Together with the Calvary, Masonic and Odd Fellows cemeteries, it formed a large burial district on the west side of the city. After decades of litigation and public debate, the remains were moved, mainly to Cypress Lawn Memorial Park in Colma.

One building from that era survives.

The San Francisco Memorial Columbarium at 1 Loraine Court, built in 1898, is City Landmark No. 209 on SF Planning’s landmark map and stands on Loraine Court near the neighborhood’s western edge. On the hilltop, the college founded in 1898 as Sacred Heart Academy and San Francisco College for Women became Lone Mountain College and joined USF in 1978. Because terraces link USF’s two campuses, the area is also known as University Terrace.

Where the blocks run

In the Assessor’s map, neighborhood 1G runs from Arguello Boulevard on the west to about Masonic Avenue on the east, and from Geary Boulevard south to the edge of Golden Gate Park. Across Geary to the north are Jordan Park and Laurel Heights; across Arguello to the west is the Inner Richmond. East of Masonic, the MLS moves into District 6, with Anza Vista to the northeast and the North Panhandle to the southeast.

Angelo J. Rossi Playground and Rossi Pool are at Arguello Boulevard and Anza Street, on the western edge. The terrain is the main thing that sets these blocks apart from the flat Richmond grid: streets curve around the hill, and some lots step up or down sharply from the sidewalk.

The housing stock: 1930s houses and older flats

We tabulated the Assessor’s 2025 closed roll on DataSF for neighborhood 1G. The counts are parcels: a condo unit is one parcel, and so is an apartment building of any size.

Type	Parcels	Build-date pattern
Single-family dwellings	463	About 73% dated 1930 to 1945; 1937 alone accounts for 108
Flats and duplexes	331	About 38% from 1930 to 1945 (peak 1939); about a third before 1920
Condominium units	317	Units in converted and purpose-built buildings
Apartments, 4 units or less	80	Small multi-unit buildings
Apartments, 5 to 14 units	62	Mid-size buildings
Apartments, 15 units or more	11	Larger buildings

That 1930s cluster is unusual for this part of the city. Between 1936 and 1941 the roll records more than 330 house parcels, so whole blocks of houses here are close in age and design. Buyers may want to understand the cemetery history, but for a purchase what matters is the parcel’s own title, permits and soils information, which the disclosure process covers.

The median single-family lot is about 2,495 square feet and the median recorded house about 1,840 square feet, the smallest lots of the seven District 1 neighborhoods. Many are compact row houses, so check how any lower-level rooms were added and whether they appear in the permit record. Older flats, about a third of them dated before 1920, are closer in character to the Edwardian buildings of the Inner Richmond; Diamond’s Victorian and Edwardian homes guide covers what to inspect.

Zoning around the hill

RH-2 is the most common zoning code in the roll, on about 670 parcels, followed by RH-3 (three-unit residential) on about 175 and RH-1 on about 140. RM-1 and RM-2 apartment zoning cover roughly 115 parcels between them, and Geary Boulevard frontage is NC-3 (about 50 parcels), with a few NC-1 corner parcels. The RH-3 share stands out in District 1, where RH-2 is the usual residential code.

Under the Family Zoning Plan, in effect since January 12, 2026, mid-rise buildings of six to eight stories are allowed on major transit and commercial streets; Planning’s illustrations of the plan include Geary Boulevard.

Around the hill, the effect is smaller: residential parcels may hold more units under their present height limit, usually four stories, while corners and sites above 8,000 square feet can rise to six. If a lot borders the USF campus, check Planning’s records for any campus projects nearby. Check any parcel on the adopted map before relying on its potential.

Landslide pockets on the hill

SF Planning’s copy of the California Geological Survey maps shows three small earthquake-induced landslide zones on the slopes of Lone Mountain itself, around the hilltop campus. No liquefaction zone is mapped in the neighborhood. Most residential blocks lie outside the landslide pockets. Their edges are approximate, because the map data is generalized, so on the hillside streets look up the specific parcel on the state’s Seismic Hazard Zone map or SF Planning’s Property Information Map rather than assuming.

Planning’s screening for landslide-zone parcels asks whether work includes new buildings, sizable additions or grading, so plans to dig out a lower floor or add space at the back of a hillside lot can trigger geotechnical work. The zone must also be disclosed on the Natural Hazard Disclosure Statement. Our San Francisco hazard maps guide covers the address lookups.

Transit at the foot of the hill

Per published route lists, the neighborhood is ringed by bus lines.

The 38 Geary and 38R Geary Rapid run along the northern edge to the Salesforce Transit Center, the 38R daily until about 7 p.m. Nearby east-west lines include the 5 Fulton and the weekday 5R Fulton Rapid, which run between downtown and Cabrillo and La Playa near Ocean Beach, and the 31 Balboa, which links Market Street with the same beach terminal. The 43 Masonic runs north to Fort Mason and south to Munich and Geneva. There is no rail station in the neighborhood, so test the bus commute at the hours you would travel.

Selling a home in Lone Mountain

Buyers here are often deciding between a 1930s house with a garage and a flat or condo in an older building nearby, so a listing should make the trade-offs explicit: private yard against shared garden, parking, stairs, and which costs are shared.

Square up the ground floor. Rooms behind the garage are common in 1930s row houses. Match them to permits or disclose them; our unwarranted units guide covers the options.
Answer the hillside questions. On sloping lots, a drainage or foundation report and any retaining-wall permits save a buyer’s inspector from guessing.
Prepare the tenancy file. Most flats and apartment buildings here predate mid-1979. Unless a unit was first certified for occupancy after June 13, 1979 with no earlier residential use, expect the Rent Ordinance’s increase limits to apply; just-cause protections apply in both cases. Gather leases and rent history for any rented unit.
Have the ownership papers ready. For condos and TICs, the recorded map, CC&Rs or TIC agreement and HOA records; see our TIC guide.
Start the city reports early. The 3R report and other steps are listed in our guide to San Francisco seller requirements.

The market report on this page has current figures; a home valuation applies them to a specific property.

Questions people ask

Where is Lone Mountain in San Francisco?

Between Geary Boulevard and Golden Gate Park, from Arguello Boulevard east to about Masonic Avenue, around the hill that holds the northern half of USF’s main campus. It is neighborhood 1G in MLS District 1.

Was Lone Mountain a cemetery?

Yes. Lone Mountain Cemetery opened in 1854 and was renamed Laurel Hill Cemetery in 1867; with the Calvary, Masonic and Odd Fellows cemeteries it formed a large burial district. The remains were later moved, mainly to Colma, but the 1898 Columbarium on Loraine Court survives as a City Landmark.

When were Lone Mountain houses built?

Mostly in the late 1930s. About 73% of single-family parcels in the Assessor’s roll are dated 1930 to 1945, with 1937 the peak year. Flats are more mixed, with about a third from before 1920.

Is Lone Mountain in a landslide zone?

Small parts of it. Planning’s copy of the state maps shows three small landslide pockets on the slopes of the hill, around the hilltop campus, and no liquefaction zone. The edges are approximate, so check the specific parcel on the official map.

Why is Lone Mountain called University Terrace?

Because terraces connect the two parts of the University of San Francisco’s campus on and below the hill.

Which buses serve Lone Mountain?

Per published route lists, the 38 and 38R on Geary, the 5 and 5R Fulton and the 31 Balboa to the south, and the 43 Masonic on the east side.

If you are buying near the hill or preparing a Lone Mountain house or flat for sale, get in touch with Diamond Real Estate Group, or browse more of our San Francisco neighborhood guides.

Sources & notes

Last reviewed October 2026 by Matthew Martinez.