Yerba Buena, San Francisco: High-Rise Condos & Real Estate Guide
Yerba Buena is the cluster of blocks around Yerba Buena Gardens and the Moscone Center, generally Second to Fifth streets between Market and Harrison streets, at the downtown edge of South of Market. Listings place it in subdistrict 9K, where the 2025 roll counts about 1,320 parcels. Nearly all of the homes are condominium and live/work units in mid-rise and high-rise buildings; the roll shows one single-family house.
The neighborhood was created by redevelopment rather than by a 19th-century subdivision, which explains its large buildings, public gardens and cultural institutions. The Financial District lies across Market Street, and the wider South of Market grid continues to the south and west.
Yerba Buena homes for sale
Yerba Buena market report
From Yerba Buena Center to the gardens
Plans for a convention center called Yerba Buena Center took shape in the early 1960s under the San Francisco Redevelopment Agency. Moscone Center opened in phases starting in 1981, and the gardens became the final centerpiece of the Yerba Buena Redevelopment Area.
The gardens fill two blocks bounded by Third, Fourth, Mission and Folsom streets. The block from Mission to Howard opened on October 11, 1993, and the block from Howard to Folsom in 1998, joined by a pedestrian bridge over Howard Street that sits on part of Moscone Center. The Yerba Buena Gardens Conservancy operates them for the city.
Around them are the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, the Children’s Creativity Museum, an ice rink and bowling center, the restored 1906 LeRoy King Carousel and the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial. SFMOMA opened nearby in 1995, and the Metreon faces the gardens.
Condo towers and live/work buildings
The roll for 9K lists about 836 market-rate condominium units, about 28 BMR condo units and about 234 live/work condos, along with 16 apartment buildings of 15 or more units. The median condo unit was built in 2001, so much of the stock is now in its second or third decade.
Among the residential towers is the 53-story building at 706 Mission Street, across Mission Street from the gardens, with lower-floor space planned for the Mexican Museum. The rest of the stock mixes live/work buildings with towers completed in the 2000s and later.
For buyers, that range means two different checklists. A building converted from older commercial space raises questions about permitted use and seismic history; a high-rise raises questions about reserves for elevators, windows, mechanical systems and the building envelope. Our luxury condo guide covers the upper end of the tower market.
Downtown zoning on the SoMa side of Market
A point check inside the gardens returns C-3-S, the Downtown Support district in Planning Code Section 210.2, with a 340-I height district and the Downtown planning area. That is downtown commercial zoning, not a residential district, which is why tall mixed-use buildings are allowed here.
The Central SoMa special use district reaches north to an irregular line along Folsom, Howard and Stevenson streets between Second and Sixth streets, so some blocks in the southern part of Yerba Buena can fall inside it. Before relying on a nearby site staying as it is, look up its zoning, height district and any pending Planning applications.
This is general information, not legal advice. A land use attorney or Planning’s counter can confirm what a particular parcel allows.
Ground conditions and inspection rules
The gardens point falls inside the state liquefaction zone on Planning’s seismic hazard layer, and in FEMA’s unshaded Zone X on the March 2021 flood map. In a high-rise, the questions that follow from that are about the foundation system and any monitoring or settlement reports the association holds; our hazard maps guide shows how to check an address.
Civil Code Section 5551 requires condominium associations to have balconies, decks, stairways and walkways more than six feet above ground inspected when they are supported in whole or in substantial part by wood. Concrete and steel towers may have few such elements, so ask the association how it handled the requirement and for the report. For a building whose permit application was filed on or after January 1, 2020, the first inspection is due within six years of the certificate of occupancy.
Transit at the edge of downtown
Rail and bus lines converge on these blocks:
- Central Subway: the T Third’s Yerba Buena/Moscone station, between Union Square/Market Street and 4th and Brannan, with service since January 7, 2023.
- Market Street: BART and Muni Metro stations along the northern edge.
- Buses: per published route lists, the 14 Mission on Mission Street, the 12 Folsom/Pacific, and the 30 Stockton and 45 Union/Stockton, which end at Townsend and Fourth streets to the south.
- Regional: Caltrain at 4th and King is a short ride south on the T Third.
Convention traffic is part of daily life here. Large events at Moscone bring heavy foot and vehicle traffic, so a buyer who drives should test the garage exit and route on an event day.
Selling a condo in Yerba Buena
Buyers in 9K compare building against building. Height and view exposure, parking, dues, staffing, amenity costs and the age of major systems sort the field before interior finishes matter.
- Disclose what dues buy. Separate services paid through dues from public amenities nearby, such as the gardens, so the listing does not overstate what ownership includes.
- Produce the reserve study and inspection reports. Include the Section 5551 report or the board’s statement on how it applies.
- Clarify unit type. Live/work units need their permitted use and any restrictions stated plainly.
- Explain the parking right. Deeded, assigned or leased spaces sell differently.
- Prepare city requirements such as the 3R report and transfer tax, covered on our San Francisco selling requirements page.
Our San Francisco condo guide lists the HOA documents buyers’ lenders ask for. Diamond may refer you to partners we work with; you’re free to choose any provider. Recent 9K sales appear in the market report on this page.
Questions people ask
Is Yerba Buena part of SoMa?
Yes. It is the part of South of Market around Yerba Buena Gardens, generally Second to Fifth streets between Market and Harrison, listed separately as subdistrict 9K.
Are there houses in Yerba Buena?
Almost none. The 2025 roll shows one single-family parcel in 9K; homes are condominium and live/work units.
What zoning applies around Yerba Buena Gardens?
A point check in the gardens returns C-3-S Downtown Support zoning with a 340-I height district, part of the city’s downtown commercial districts.
Which Muni Metro station serves Yerba Buena?
The T Third’s Yerba Buena/Moscone station in the Central Subway, plus the BART and Muni Metro stations under Market Street.
Is Yerba Buena in a liquefaction zone?
The point we checked in the gardens is inside the state liquefaction zone on Planning’s map. Check each building’s address and ask about its foundation.
How old are Yerba Buena condos?
The median condo unit on the 2025 roll was built in 2001, with a mix of converted older buildings and towers from the 2000s and later.
A Yerba Buena sale starts with the building file: dues, reserves, inspection reports and the parking right. Contact us to go through yours alongside recent 9K sales. South Beach is the closest comparison for tower buyers, and the SF District 9 overview and our San Francisco neighborhood guide place these blocks among the city’s other districts.
Sources & notes
- DataSF / SF Assessor-Recorder: Assessor Historical Secured Property Tax Rolls, 2025 closed roll (parcel counts by property class and build year, medians and parcel extents for neighborhood codes 9F-9K, queried October 2026)
- San Francisco Planning: PlanningData map service (zoning, special use, height, Article 10, port jurisdiction, planning area, FEMA flood and seismic hazard layers; point and area queries, October 2026)
- San Francisco Planning Code (via GoCodebook): Sec. 249.78, Central SoMa Special Use District
- California Civil Code Sec. 5551, balcony, deck and stairway inspections for condominium associations (California Public Law mirror)
- Wikipedia: Yerba Buena Gardens (blocks, opening dates, institutions; background only)
- Wikipedia: South of Market, San Francisco (boundaries, history, landmarks; background only)
- Wikipedia: South Beach, San Francisco (South Beach, Rincon Hill, South Park and Yerba Buena descriptions; background only)
- Wikipedia: T Third Street (stations, 2007 opening, Central Subway service from January 2023)
- Wikipedia: List of San Francisco Municipal Railway lines (route names and termini; status as of July 2022)
Last reviewed October 2026 by Matthew Martinez.
