Bayview, San Francisco: Homes, Third Street & Real Estate Guide
Bayview is the southeast San Francisco neighborhood built along Third Street, running from Cesar Chavez Street and Islais Creek south toward Bayview Hill, with Hunters Point to the east and US 101 to the west. The Assessor’s subdistrict 10A counts about 5,030 parcels on the 2025 roll, including roughly 2,740 single-family houses, 255 two-unit flats and about 275 condominium units, alongside hundreds of industrial parcels.
That mix is the defining fact. Bayview is a house neighborhood wrapped around a working industrial district, and the General Plan’s Bayview Hunters Point Area Plan, adopted in 1995 and amended in 2006 and 2010, is largely about managing the edge between the two.
Bayview homes for sale
Bayview market report
Houses over garages: the housing stock
The median single-family house in 10A was built in 1937, sits on a lot of about 2,500 square feet and has about 1,390 square feet of living area. A 2,500-square-foot lot is the size of a standard 25-by-100-foot city lot. The Area Plan reports that about 43 percent of the plan area’s housing predates 1950 and is typically one story over a garage.
Beyond the houses, the roll shows about 256 two-unit flats, about 50 flat-and-store buildings, around 65 small apartment buildings of up to 14 units and about 20 larger ones. Condominiums account for about 275 parcels and townhouses for about 125.
The Area Plan sets the tone for additions and new buildings: Policy 5.1 asks that infill match the existing bulk, setbacks and height of the block. Most residential blocks are RH-1 and RH-2 on Planning’s map, with some RH-3 and RM-1.
Third Street: the Bayview Neighborhood Commercial District
Third Street is the spine. Planning Code Section 737 places the Bayview Neighborhood Commercial District “along Third Street between Yosemite and Jerrold Avenues,” a linear district on a major transit route. Height is generally 40-X, residential use is permitted on every floor, and new buildings are encouraged to put housing above the second story. Density is one unit per 600 square feet of lot area, or the nearest residential district’s limit if that is higher.
Several overlays sit on top. Planning’s special use layer shows the Third Street special use district, the Third Street Alcohol Restricted Use District, under which new liquor stores and bars are generally not permitted, and a Third Street formula retail control that makes chain stores conditional uses. The Area Plan calls the blocks from Kirkwood Avenue to Thomas and Thornton avenues the commercial core and names the Bayview Opera House and the adjoining Town Center block as the center of that core.
Elsewhere in the subdistrict, Planning’s map also shows an NCT-3 transit district, NC-1 to NC-3 commercial parcels and production, distribution and repair (PDR) districts.
Industrial edges and the Area Plan
More than a quarter of the plan area is industrial, according to the Area Plan, which names four industrial subareas: Northern Industrial, India Basin Industrial Park, South Basin East and South Basin West. Objective 8 keeps PDR zoning in place there. History explains the pattern: the plan notes that in 1868 the northern area, then called Butchertown, was set aside for slaughtering livestock.
Planning’s current zoning layer shows PDR-1-B, PDR-1-G and PDR-2 alongside older M-1 and M-2 districts, plus mixed-use residential (MUR) and C-2 parcels. Site-specific special use districts include 1550 Evans Avenue, 2000 Marin Street and the Bayview Industrial Triangle Cannabis RUD. When a listing backs onto an industrial block, check the zoning of that block as well as the house’s own.
| Area of Bayview | Typical zoning | What to check |
|---|---|---|
| Residential blocks east and west of Third Street | RH-1, RH-2, some RH-3 and RM-1 | Permit history of ground-floor rooms; rear-yard additions |
| Third Street, Yosemite to Jerrold | Bayview NCD (Sec. 737), 40-X | Alcohol and formula retail controls; residential above the ground floor |
| North toward Islais Creek and Cesar Chavez | PDR-1-B, PDR-1-G, PDR-2, M-1, M-2 | Whether residential use is allowed at all; mapped liquefaction |
| South Basin near Yosemite Slough | PDR-2 and industrial districts | Liquefaction mapping; shoreline flood zones nearby |
Fill, flood maps and sea level rise
Much of Bayview’s lowland is made land. The Port of San Francisco notes that Islais Creek was a broad creek and marsh filled for agricultural and industrial use in the late 1800s, and that filled areas like it are subject to liquefaction. The Area Plan puts it more bluntly, describing a bay edge built by landfill “with little regard for soil stability and toxicity.”
Planning’s liquefaction layer matches that history. Two points we checked fall inside a mapped liquefaction zone: one on the Third Street corridor near Islais Creek and one in the PDR-zoned industrial area toward Yosemite Slough. A residential point in the middle of the neighborhood does not. A mapped zone triggers a disclosure at sale and a soils investigation for new development, under the state Seismic Hazards Mapping Act.
Flood maps are a separate question:
- FEMA: on the effective flood map shown in Planning’s layer (panel 0232, effective March 23, 2021), the point near Islais Creek is in Zone X (shaded) and interior points are Zone X (unshaded); both are outside FEMA’s Special Flood Hazard Area. AE and VE zones on the effective map are along the shoreline to the east.
- SFPUC 100-year storm map: shows parcels likely to see deep, contiguous flooding from rainfall, not the bay. Sellers must disclose if a property is in that zone under Police Code Article 51.
- Sea level rise: the Port expects “additional flood risks near Islais Creek and along the shoreline,” and San Francisco Planning, the Port and SFMTA completed the Islais Creek Southeast Mobility Adaptation Strategy in August 2021. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ waterfront flood study covers the shoreline as far south as Heron’s Head Park.
Our hazard maps guide shows how to check a parcel on each map.
Two environmental layers worth knowing
A point we checked on Third Street in the commercial core falls inside the Health Code Article 38 Air Pollutant Exposure Zone, as mapped in 2025, and inside Planning’s serpentine rock layer, which carries dust control requirements under Health Code Article 22B for construction that disturbs soil. Planning flags both layers for environmental review. Neither affects day-to-day use of an existing house. Before a project that moves soil or adds units, ask Planning and the Department of Public Health what applies.
Rail, bus and freeway access
The T Third light rail runs the length of Third Street. Full service began April 7, 2007, and since January 7, 2023 the line has continued north through the Central Subway to Chinatown. Bayview stops include Marin Street, Evans, Hudson/Innes, Kirkwood/La Salle, Oakdale/Palou, Revere/Shafter, Williams, Carroll and Gilman/Paul, with the line ending at Sunnydale.
Caltrain is reachable at both ends: the T’s 23rd Street stop is listed as the connection to Caltrain’s 22nd Street station, and its Arleta stop as the connection to Bayshore station, a Zone 1 stop on the Caltrain timetable. Published route lists give several buses a Bayview end point: the 15, 23 and 24 at Palou Avenue and Third Street, the 29 Sunset at Fitzgerald Avenue and Keith Street, the 44 at Hudson Avenue and Third Street, and the 54 Felton at Newhall and Hudson. Confirm current service with SFMTA.
Selling a home in Bayview
Buyers comparing Bayview houses spend most of their time on the ground floor. A one-story house over a garage often has had the garage level finished at some point, and whether that space was permitted changes how it can be described, appraised and financed.
- Order the 3R report early and compare it with the floor plan; our unwarranted units guide covers how to handle unpermitted rooms.
- Pull the hazard picture for the parcel, including liquefaction, FEMA and the SFPUC storm map, so the disclosure package is complete when buyers ask.
- Note the zoning next door if the house borders a PDR or industrial block.
- For two-unit flats, gather leases and rent history; buildings built before 1979 are generally covered by the city’s rent ordinance, explained on our San Francisco multifamily page.
The citywide checklist, including transfer tax and water and energy rules, is on our San Francisco selling requirements page. Diamond may refer you to partners we work with; you’re free to choose any provider.
Questions people ask
Where does Bayview end and Hunters Point begin?
The Assessor and MLS treat them as separate subdistricts, 10A Bayview and 10J Hunters Point. Bayview covers the blocks along Third Street; Hunters Point covers the hill and former shipyard to the east. The General Plan uses one Bayview Hunters Point Area Plan for both.
What is the Bayview Neighborhood Commercial District?
It is the zoning district along Third Street between Yosemite and Jerrold Avenues under Planning Code Section 737. Heights are generally 40-X, residential use is allowed on every floor, and alcohol and formula retail controls apply.
Is Bayview in a liquefaction zone?
Parts are. Planning’s map shows mapped liquefaction near Islais Creek and in the South Basin area near Yosemite Slough, but not at the interior residential points we checked. Look up the specific parcel.
Is Bayview in a FEMA flood zone?
Most of the neighborhood is Zone X on the effective FEMA map. Higher-risk AE and VE zones lie along the shoreline. The SFPUC’s separate 100-year storm map covers rainfall flooding and has its own disclosure rule.
What transit serves Bayview?
The T Third light rail runs along Third Street from Sunnydale through the Central Subway to Chinatown. Several bus routes end in Bayview, and Caltrain stops at 22nd Street to the north and Bayshore to the south.
Can I add a unit to a Bayview house?
Often, since most residential lots are RH-1 or RH-2, but the answer depends on the lot, the building and current rules. Our ADU guide and an early talk with Planning help before you price in a unit.
Selling or buying in Bayview? Ask for a home valuation that compares your house with sales on similar blocks and lots. You can also read about Hunters Point, Silver Terrace, Portola, the wider SF District 10, buying a home with an ADU and the San Francisco guide.
Sources & notes
- DataSF / SF Assessor-Recorder: Assessor Historical Secured Property Tax Rolls, 2025 closed roll (parcel counts by property class, median build year, lot and building area of single-family parcels, zoning codes and parcel extents for neighborhood codes 10A-10N; queried October 2026)
- San Francisco Planning: PlanningData map service (zoning districts, special use districts, FEMA flood hazard, CGS liquefaction and landslide zone, plan area and supervisor district layers; queried October 2026)
- San Francisco Planning, General Plan: Bayview Hunters Point Area Plan
- San Francisco Planning Code (via GoCodebook): Sec. 737, Bayview Neighborhood Commercial District
- Port of San Francisco, Waterfront Resilience Program: Islais Creek / Bayview Resilience
- San Francisco Public Utilities Commission: 100-Year Storm Flood Risk Map information sheet and FAQs (December 2024 update)
- California Geological Survey: Seismic Hazards Program
- Wikipedia: T Third Street (opening dates, Central Subway, station list)
- Caltrain: Bayshore station page (fare zone 1)
- Wikipedia: List of San Francisco Municipal Railway lines (route names and termini; status as of July 2022)
Last reviewed October 2026 by Matthew Martinez.
