Soft-Story Retrofit Rules for Bay Area Apartment Buildings
A soft-story retrofit strengthens the weak ground floor of an older wood-frame apartment building, usually where parking, shops or wide openings leave too little wall to resist an earthquake. San Francisco, Oakland, Berkeley, Fremont and Mill Valley are among the Bay Area cities with mandatory programs, while others such as San Jose and Hayward have adopted rules that stop short of a required retrofit. For a buyer, the question is not only whether a building was covered, but whether the work was finished, permitted and signed off.
This page compares the main programs as of October 2026, explains how retrofit costs can be shared with tenants under local rent laws, lists the grants and tax rules that soften the bill, and sets out the documents to request before you remove contingencies. It is written for buyers and owners of older multifamily buildings; our investor services page covers the rest of the acquisition process.
What a soft story is and why cities regulate it
Cities use the phrase “soft, weak or open front” for a story that is much less stiff or strong than the floors above it. In a typical Bay Area example, the ground floor of a three-story apartment building is mostly garage doors or storefront glass, and the upper floors are lined with walls.
In strong shaking, a level like that can lean or give way under the floors above it. Retrofit designs add strength at that level, for example with new shear walls, and San Francisco’s program limits the required work to the lower level.
The programs below target wood-frame buildings. Unreinforced masonry and older concrete buildings are separate categories with their own rules, which we touch on later.
Program status by city
The table combines each city’s program page with the Association of Bay Area Governments’ list of Bay Area soft-story ordinances, dated June 26, 2026. Where the two differ, follow the city. ABAG’s list is a summary, and in places its wording is inconsistent, as noted in the table.
| City | Program type | Buildings targeted | Status notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| San Francisco | Mandatory retrofit, 2013 | Older wood-frame multifamily buildings with a soft-story condition, sorted into four tiers | Tier IV completion deadline extended to September 15, 2021; all tiers’ deadlines have now passed |
| Oakland | Mandatory evaluation and retrofit, Ordinance No. 13516, effective January 22, 2019 | Residential buildings built before 1991 with large ground-floor openings | Tiered schedule of one to six years; city posts a list of subject properties (May 2026) |
| Berkeley | Mandatory retrofit, Municipal Code Chapter 19.39 (ABAG dates it to 2014, after a 2005 program) | Soft, weak or open front wood-frame buildings with five or more units permitted before 1978 | City has notified owners; inventory dated March 25, 2024 |
| Fremont | Mandatory | Not described in the ABAG summary | ABAG calls it the first mandatory ordinance in the Bay Area, but its entry gives both 2007 and 2009 as the adoption year |
| Mill Valley | Mandatory, 2023 | Not described in the ABAG summary | One of six Northern California cities in the 2026 state grant program |
| San Jose | Adopted 2024 | Not described in the ABAG summary | ABAG says it is voluntary while its effective date is delayed |
| Alameda | Ordinance from 2009 | Not described in the ABAG summary | ABAG’s text says screening is mandatory and retrofit voluntary, though its own link label calls the ordinance a mandatory retrofit; it reports 146 identified soft-story buildings retrofitted as of 2026 |
| Hayward | 2019 ordinance | Not described in the ABAG summary | Mandatory screening, voluntary retrofit per ABAG |
A building on a city’s list is not automatically out of compliance, and a building missing from a list is not automatically safe. Ask the city’s building department for the record on the specific address.
San Francisco’s program in detail
San Francisco’s Mandatory Soft Story Retrofit Program sorts buildings into four tiers. The Department of Building Inspection describes them this way:
- Tier I: buildings with educational, assembly or residential care uses.
- Tier II: buildings with 15 or more dwelling units.
- Tier III: buildings not in another tier.
- Tier IV: buildings with ground-floor commercial uses, or any building in a mapped liquefaction zone.
Screening forms were due September 15, 2014. Tier IV was the last tier to come due. A Board of Supervisors release dated September 15, 2020 says the Board extended its completion deadline from September 15, 2020 to September 15, 2021, and that 425 of 1,014 Tier IV properties still needed to finish their work at that time.
DBI warns that missing permit deadlines leads to code enforcement action and penalties. For a covered San Francisco building in 2026, the practical question is simple: is there a final sign-off for the retrofit permit? Our guide to buying apartment buildings in San Francisco covers the city’s rent and transfer tax rules alongside it, and our page on San Francisco hazard maps shows how to check the liquefaction layer that put buildings into Tier IV.
Oakland and Berkeley
Oakland
Oakland’s earlier 2009 ordinance required owners only to file information. Ordinance No. 13516, effective January 22, 2019, requires owners of potential soft-story buildings built before 1991 to strengthen them. Each building is assigned a tier with deadlines counted in years for the initial evaluation, the permit or a report, and completion, ranging from four years for Tier 1 to six years for Tier 3.
The city’s page does not show the start date for a given building, so ask the seller for the city’s notice and any extension or tier change. The city posts a PDF list of subject properties dated May 2026. Our page on Oakland rent rules for owners covers the Rent Adjustment Program, including capital improvement increases.
Berkeley
Berkeley’s program, in Municipal Code Chapter 19.39, covers soft, weak or open front wood-frame residential buildings with five or more units that were permitted for construction before 1978. The city says it has notified owners and adds buildings to its inventory as staff learn of them.
Owners are expected to notify prospective tenants, arrange financing, hire a design professional and complete the work. Berkeley’s separate unreinforced masonry program, Chapter 19.38, notified 587 properties, and the city says only a handful still need to retrofit. For the rent side, see our guide to Berkeley rent stabilization for owners.
Who pays: tenant pass-throughs, grants and tax rules
San Francisco Rent Board pass-throughs
Under the Rent Board’s capital improvement rules, 100% of the cost of seismic work required by law can be passed through to tenants in rent-controlled units, regardless of building size. The work is amortized over 20 years, and the yearly increase is limited to the greater of $30 or 10% of the tenant’s petition base rent.
The landlord files a separate capital improvement petition form for required seismic work. Tenants can file a financial hardship application. Once they file, they don’t pay the pass-through unless the Rent Board denies the application, in which case it is owed back to the original effective date. A buyer should not assume the full amount will be collected on schedule.
Berkeley transfer tax rebate
Berkeley rebates up to one-third of its base 1.5% transfer tax for qualifying seismic work on residential buildings and mixed-use buildings with at least two residential units. The rebate does not apply to the enhanced 1% tax.
The work must be finished before the sale or within a year after it, with a possible one-year extension for good cause. The city asks owners to contact Building and Safety first and to pull a separate permit with “seismic safety work for transfer tax reduction” in the scope.
State grant for mandated retrofits
On August 19, 2026, the California Residential Mitigation Program, a joint powers authority formed by the California Earthquake Authority and the Governor’s Office of Emergency Services, opened registration for its Earthquake Multi-Unit Retrofit program. It offers up to $49,600 toward retrofitting soft, weak or open front wood-frame buildings with five to ten units built before January 1, 1991, where the city has issued a notice and order under a mandatory ordinance. The participating Northern California cities are Albany, Berkeley, Mill Valley, Oakland, San Francisco and San Jose. Registration ran from August 19 through September 30, 2026. The release did not announce a later round, so check with the program before counting on one.
The state’s better-known Earthquake Brace + Bolt grant is a different program. It offers up to $3,000 to bolt and brace wood-frame houses built before 1980 with raised foundations, and its program page speaks only of houses, so do not count on it for an apartment building.
Property tax
Revenue and Taxation Code section 74.5 keeps qualifying seismic retrofitting components from being treated as new construction, so the work need not raise the assessed value. The owner must notify the assessor before completion or within 30 days after it and provide documents within six months. Our guide to California property tax for investors explains reassessment more broadly.
What to request before you buy
- The city’s determination. The notice or letter placing the building in a program and tier, or a written determination that it is exempt.
- Permits and sign-off. The retrofit permit, approved plans and the final inspection or certificate of completion. Plans alone do not mean the work was done.
- Engineer’s documents. The structural engineer’s evaluation and calculations, and any special inspection reports.
- Pass-through status. Any capital improvement petitions, Rent Board decisions and hardship filings, so you know what rent is actually collectible.
- Grant and rebate paperwork. Approved grant agreements, rebate applications and any conditions that carry over to a buyer.
- Your own engineer’s review. Even a finished retrofit addresses only the ground floor; have an engineer look at the rest of the building, the foundation and the site.
Lenders and insurers ask the same questions. Our guide to apartment building loans covers how seismic condition enters a lender’s review. Diamond may refer you to partners we work with, such as structural engineers and contractors; you’re free to choose any provider.
Hazard maps and other building types
A retrofit addresses the building, but the ground matters too. The state’s seismic hazard zone maps show areas prone to liquefaction and earthquake-triggered landslides, and the earthquake fault zone maps show where surface rupture is possible. Our guide to California earthquake fault zones explains both and how they appear in the natural hazard disclosure.
Unreinforced masonry is a separate risk. Older brick buildings often fall under their own local ordinances, such as Berkeley’s Chapter 19.38 and the City of Napa’s masonry chapter discussed in our guide to multifamily investing in Napa. If you are weighing a sale of a building that has not been retrofitted, our guide to selling a multifamily property covers how to present the condition to buyers.
Questions people ask
Which Bay Area cities require soft-story retrofits?
San Francisco, Oakland, Berkeley, Fremont and Mill Valley have mandatory programs, according to the cities and ABAG’s June 2026 list. San Jose’s 2024 ordinance is voluntary while its effective date is delayed, and Alameda and Hayward require screening rather than a retrofit, per ABAG.
Have San Francisco’s soft-story deadlines passed?
Yes. Tier IV was the last tier, and its completion deadline was extended to September 15, 2021. A covered building today should have a finaled retrofit permit, or it faces enforcement.
Can a landlord pass soft-story retrofit costs to tenants in San Francisco?
Yes, through a Rent Board petition. Seismic work required by law can be passed through at 100%, amortized over 20 years, with yearly increases capped at the greater of $30 or 10% of base rent, and tenants can claim hardship.
What does Oakland’s soft-story ordinance cover?
Ordinance No. 13516, effective January 22, 2019, covers potential soft-story residential buildings built before 1991. Deadlines run by tier, from four to six years for completion.
Does Earthquake Brace + Bolt pay for apartment retrofits?
Its program page describes only pre-1980 wood-frame houses with raised foundations. Apartment buildings in mandated cities should look at the Earthquake Multi-Unit Retrofit program instead.
Does a seismic retrofit raise my property taxes?
Not if it qualifies under Revenue and Taxation Code 74.5 and you notify the assessor in time: before completion or within 30 days after, with documents within six months.
This is general information, not legal or engineering advice. Retrofit obligations and pass-through rights turn on the city’s records and the building itself, so talk to a licensed structural engineer about the building and a California real estate attorney about compliance before you buy. When you are ready to look at older apartment buildings, contact Diamond Real Estate Group.
Sources & notes
- San Francisco Department of Building Inspection: Soft story program, for property owners
- San Francisco Board of Supervisors: Seismic retrofit deadline extended by one year (September 15, 2020)
- San Francisco Rent Board: Capital improvement petitions
- City of Oakland: Mandatory Soft Story Retrofit Program
- City of Berkeley: Mandatory earthquake retrofit programs
- City of Berkeley: Transfer tax rebates for seismic work
- Association of Bay Area Governments: Bay Area soft story ordinances (June 26, 2026)
- California Earthquake Authority: Earthquake Multi-Unit Retrofit program opens registration (August 19, 2026)
- California Residential Mitigation Program: Earthquake Brace + Bolt retrofit
- California Public Law: Revenue and Taxation Code section 74.5
Last reviewed October 2026 by Matthew Martinez.
