Best Real Estate Agents in San Francisco (2026 Guide)

San Francisco is both a city and a county, and its housing runs from single-family houses to condos, small apartment buildings and tenancy-in-common shares, many of them touched by rent and eviction rules. Hire an agent who works in your neighborhood and your property type. This guide lists licensed agents whose public profiles say they serve San Francisco, with links to their license records.

The market is moving fast. In September 2026 the median home sold in 17 days at 115% of its list price, and 69.7% of sales closed above asking (Redfin). The citywide single-family median was $2,054,000, up 17.4% in a year (C.A.R.).

San Francisco market snapshot

Census QuickFacts, 2020-2024 estimates.

San Francisco is mostly a city of renters: 38.2% of its homes are owner-occupied (Census QuickFacts), compared with 63.0% in Solano County. That’s why rent rules come up in so many sales here, from a single condo with a tenant to a six-unit building. Across all home types, Redfin’s median sale price was $1,579,248 in September 2026, up 14.9%, on 1,411 sales; only 10.1% of listings had a price drop, and the median price per square foot reached about $1,150 (Redfin). The Bay Area’s regional single-family median was $1,325,000 that month (C.A.R.).

The top of the market has rebounded too. Redfin reported luxury sales up 22.2% in March 2026 from a year earlier, with a median luxury price of $6,808,561 (Redfin), and Compass data reported by the SF Standard counted 144 sales at $1 million or more above asking in the first half of 2026, against 8 a year before. Natural hazards look different from wine country: First Street’s model on Redfin shows severe flood risk for about 3% of properties and wildfire risk for under 1% (Redfin).

Neighborhoods and housing types

Buyers here search by neighborhood, and the housing changes block by block. City planners note that only 10% of new housing built over the past 15 years went into the western and northern parts of the city, which make up more than half its land, while the eastern and southern neighborhoods were rezoned in earlier decades (SF Planning). So in the Sunset, the Richmond and northern neighborhoods such as Pacific Heights, the Marina and Russian Hill, older houses, flats and small buildings make up most of what comes up for sale, while newer condo buildings cluster in the east.

Expect four broad products: single-family houses; condominiums; two- to six-unit buildings sold whole; and tenancy-in-common (TIC) shares, where co-owners hold a building together and each has the right to use a particular unit. A TIC buyer owns a share of the whole property rather than a separate parcel, so the TIC agreement and the loan terms matter as much as the unit.

Condo conversion and TICs

San Francisco Public Works currently lists its standard condo conversion path for two-unit buildings only. The Expedited Conversion Program for buildings of two to six units is marked suspended, following a partial suspension in August 2017 (SF Public Works). So a TIC share in a building of three or more units may have no near-term route to becoming a condo. Price it, and finance it, on that basis.

Rules and costs that shape a San Francisco deal

• Transfer tax tiers: Old Republic Title’s chart lists $5.00 per $1,000 of price up to $250,000, $6.80 to $999,999, $7.50 from $1 million to $4,999,999, $22.50 from $5 million to $9,999,999, $55.00 from $10 million to $24,999,999 and $60.00 at $25 million and up, with sellers customarily paying (Old Republic Title). On a $2,054,000 house, the $7.50 tier works out to about $15,405. The 5.5% and 6% top tiers were set by Proposition I in November 2020 (SF Controller).
• A 2026 transfer tax measure: the City Controller’s August 10, 2026 analysis of a new Proposition I describes halving the General Fund rates on sales of $10 million or more and adding a House SF Tax at matching rates for affordable housing, which would leave the combined rates at 5.5% and 6% (SF Controller). Confirm the rate in effect with your title company before you close.
• The Rent Ordinance: Administrative Code Chapter 37 took effect June 13, 1979 and was last amended February 9, 2026. Owners of units that first received a certificate of occupancy after June 13, 1979 may set rents, and owners of separately sellable units such as many houses and condos can generally set rents too, with exceptions. The ordinance also lists specific just causes for eviction, including owner move-in and Ellis Act withdrawals (Rent Ordinance). Ask a tenant-landlord attorney about any occupied property.
• ADUs: the city runs local and state ADU programs. Units added under the local program are subject to rent control, state law keeps some state-program ADUs out of it, and no ADU is eligible for the short-term rental program (SF Planning).
• Rezoning: the Family Zoning Plan, signed December 12, 2025 and effective January 12, 2026, allows mid-rise (6 to 8 stories) and high-rise (9 or more) housing on major transit and commercial streets in the western and northern neighborhoods, plus duplexes to fourplexes on residential lots through a local program (SF Planning). It’s part of meeting a state target of 82,069 homes for 2023 to 2031.
• Property tax: the secured rate for fiscal 2026-27 is 1.18162182% of assessed value, and a purchase triggers reappraisal and a supplemental bill for any increase (SF Treasurer).
• Loan size: the 2026 conforming loan ceiling in high-cost areas is $1,249,125 (FHFA), so most purchases at San Francisco’s median need a jumbo loan or a large down payment.

Licensed agents who list San Francisco

Agents are listed alphabetically. Each profile lists San Francisco among its service areas, or the agent works from a San Francisco office; the last column shows what matched.

11 agents, in alphabetical order. Each one names San Francisco or a community in it on a public profile; the last column shows which.

How buying in San Francisco differs, and what to ask an agent

1. Ask what they sell most: houses, condos or TICs. Each comes with different documents, lenders and resale questions.
2. Ask how they’d price an offer. When the median sale closes at 115% of list, the asking price says little about the final number. Ask for recent sales of similar homes on nearby blocks and how far over list each one went.
3. Read the disclosure package before you bid. Ask whether the seller has inspection reports, how offer deadlines will work and whether the seller will review offers early.
4. For any building with tenants, get the rent-law picture first. Ask which parts of the Rent Ordinance apply, and bring in an attorney before you count on rental income or an empty unit.
5. For condos and TICs, study the paperwork. HOA budgets and reserves, special assessments and the TIC agreement can matter as much as the unit itself.
6. Sellers: know your tier. Ask the agent to show transfer tax and net proceeds at several prices, especially near the $1 million and $5 million breaks.

Our San Francisco area guide covers the wider city, and San Francisco luxury homes goes deeper on the high end. Sellers can read our Bay Area guide for first-time sellers. Buyers should see how to compete in a bidding war, what an HOA means for condo owners and our financing page. Looking across the Golden Gate or down the Peninsula? Compare the Marin County agents guide and our San Mateo County page.

San Francisco real estate questions

Is San Francisco a city or a county?

Both. A single consolidated government serves as city and county, so there’s one assessor-recorder, one planning department and one transfer tax schedule for the whole area.

What is a TIC, and can it become a condo?

A tenancy in common is shared ownership of a whole building, with each owner entitled to use a specific unit. Public Works currently lists a standard conversion path for two-unit buildings only; its expedited program for two to six units is suspended.

Who pays transfer tax in San Francisco?

By local custom the seller does, according to Old Republic Title, but closing costs are negotiable. The rate depends on the sale price tier.

Does rent control apply to a house or condo I rent out?

Often not the rent limits: the Rent Ordinance generally lets owners of separately sellable units set rents, with exceptions. Other parts of the ordinance, including its eviction rules, can still matter, so check with the Rent Board or an attorney before you sign a lease.

Sources & notes

• California DRE license lookup
• Census QuickFacts: San Francisco
• Redfin San Francisco housing market (September 2026); C.A.R. September 2026; Census QuickFacts; Redfin luxury report (May 2026); SF Standard (July 2026, Compass data)
• Old Republic Title closing costs chart (January 2024); SF Controller letter on Proposition I (August 10, 2026); SF Treasurer secured property taxes; FHFA 2026 loan limits
• Rent Ordinance (Chapter 37, amended February 9, 2026); SF Planning ADU programs; SF Planning: Family Zoning Plan; SF Public Works condo conversion

Last reviewed October 2026 by Matthew Martinez.