I contacted Daniel Bornstein after working with another attorney for a period of four months with an intractable problem and no solution in site. Two tenants had been disagreeing with one another about noise and one tenant made some very strong claims against the other that crossed the limit. Daniel was quick to respond to my query and agreed to see me right away. He was very careful to outline the limitations of prosecuting one tenant for behavior towards another and was clear about what was needed to create a case. But once the case was started, he strongly recommended that I approach the tenants directly and offer some other way out of the situation. He encouraged me at all points to reach out- something that I'd tried unsuccessfully for years. However, his advice turned out to be very effective and the tenants and landlord worked out all problems without court. I highly recommend Bornstein and Bornstein not just for legal support, but for conflict resolution. read more

This is a review of Daniel Bornstein's Rent Control Boot Camp. I am a client of this office who has been very satisfied with their service, but I want to say something about Mr. Daniel Bornstein in the context of educating people about a very challenging and complex topic. In a 90 minute presentation - with handouts & PowerPoint slides - Mr. Bornstein educated a roomful of people: real estate professionals, rental property owners & managers and whoever else was there about the complexities of the San Francisco Rent Ordinance. In addition to knowing his subject matter backwards and forwards, Mr. Bornstein is a very dynamic and engaging lecturer. There are some very specific distinctions to be made when considering how the Rent Ordinance applies in various circumstances, and Mr. Bornstein took pains to make sure that the attendees had every opportunity to remember what they are and that they need to be considered in their entirety. I'm not going to try to explain the material here, but if you hear that he's doing another Boot Camp, by all means go! Mr. Bornstein used examples from his experience, and entertained complex questions from the attendees (after he had completed the presentation), using all of these to drive home the points he was trying to get across to us. read more

We'd used Daniel Bornstein for some tenant advice last year. This year we had a quick follow up question. We repeatedly emailed and called Bornstein, asking for a phone consultation. He never responded. I could understand if he responded and said it would cost extra. But he simply did not bother responding. How Rude! Even last year, when we first went to him, when we had follow up questions, he didnt bother responding (after the first 15 min call). It was only after I gave him a bad review on Yelp that he responded, and begged me to change my review, which I did. I'm reverting back to my original opinion of him - he only cares about his yelp ratings and nothing else. read more

I hired Bornstein Law to help me with an owner move in for my property in San Francisco. It is intimidating navigating through the complexities of SF rental laws but Daniel took the time to thoroughly read my lease agreement and explain his strategy as well as the steps that I needed to take to cover myself legally through out the process. His correspondence was prompt, concise and his firm was conscientious of time and billing. I am very pleased with the outcome and I am certain it would not have been possible without his attention to detail and professionalism. I would definitely recommend him to anyone negotiating San Francisco tenant law. Absolutely worth it! read more

It was my first time dealing with a landlord-renter situation. Daniel is very professional. He is knowledgeable, efficient , straight to the point as well as very patient! When I met him, I was a bit nervous as I had heard horror stories about renters as well as lawyers in my kind of situation. Am glad I had Daniel as my lawyer. The process was very smooth as well as he didn't charge me anything additional from the fees agreed upon in the beginning of the process I highly recommend Daniel! read more

Several attorneys were recommended to us, but we chose Daniel because he listened to our case and gave us advice - over the phone and in person - without an upfront retainer. He is to the point and a great closer. He literally closed our deal with the tenant at his office the day before we were to file the three day notice in court. The background: After 3 + yrs of being the backup offer on various properties, my husband and I bought our first home, a duplex, in June 2011 in the Mission District. The 2 bedroom upstairs unit was rented by room. There were 4 individuals making the place their home - without paying rent for months. There was a squatter in the garage and the former owners - and lots of roaches - on the 1st floor. To keep this story short, with Daniel Bornstein's assistance, all tenants and the squatter vacated the property within 30 days. Our out of pocket, including attorney's fees, were about $16,000 - we paid less than 10% of our costs to B&B. After all was said and done, B&B refunded us $250 of the retainer. I wish B&B had some advice for getting rid of the roaches on the 1st floor. read more

Daniel Bornstein is an excellent real estate attorney who helped me recently vacate some tenants who had not paid rent in a year, in preparation for the sale of the home. He was prompt in his actions, professional, and friendly! I was extremely impressed by how he handled this situation and will definitely use him in the future. read more

Daniel Bornstein is a laser beam. He has a sharp mind, and is as direct and concise as they come (which is important when you're paying someone for their time). He reviewed a difficult tenant situation for me when I was buying a property and helped me negotiate a much better price. His thinking is clear and extremely pragmatic. He cut through the many variables involved and wrapped his analysis in excellent business advice. I also found him extremely responsive. He told me that he responds to emails within half a day and was true to his word. (That is no small thing. Many in-demand, skilled professionals are hard to reach and take multiple calls/emails to get back to you.) I'd definitely use him again. read more

Daniel Bornstein, of Bornstein & Bornstein, has proven himself as an invaluable asset in discerning & articulating the legal "nuances" associated with real estate in San Francisco. He has assisted us on several transactions which have all resulted in a smooth closing & transition. He has educated us on the ever-changing laws relating to Landlord / Tenant relations. In particular he has helped us navigate the negotiations with tenant buy-outs on under-performing properties, His knowledge, professionalism and direct approach makes him a great resource for anyone needing a real estate attorney. read more

Daniel was most helpful to me in a recent tenant situation. He is very patient and didn't rush the problem so it worked out very well. I will use Daniel anytime I have a tenant problem in the future. read more

​As new landlords, Daniel Bornstein has helped us with some unusual landlord-tenant problems at a property in San Francisco. Unlike an earlier attorney we had worked with, Daniel came up with simple solutions that worked and were fair, both to us and our tenants. He responds quickly to our calls​ and emails​, and does not over bill for his time​. I highly recommend Daniel and his firm. read more

The Law Offices of Bornstein & Bornstein have been absolutely helpful in handling all of my real estate needs. Daniel Bornstein is an attorney who is accomodating, but aggressive in pursing my goals. Without a doubt, I highly recommed this firm if you are facing issues relating to your real estate investment. Renuka Subramaniam read more

I was looking for an attorney regarding a tenant in a multi unit apartment building. Bornstein advertises heavily in many landlord and property owner publications. Plus the reviews are abundantly favorable, so I had positive expectations. To his credit, Daniel Bornstein was quick to respond via email, and I was able to reach him on the phone without much delay. I also don't doubt his knowledge in tenant / landlord law. But after speaking with him, I'm certain he would have been a terrible attorney for me: He did not seem to listen or pay attention to the specific details I had provided him. He made it feel like I was imposing on his time. At his request, I provided him with years of documents and detailed information via email. My issue involved a problem tenant in a possible nuisance case. Before speaking to me, he leaves a voice mail stating his recommended course of action, with no explanation. He did not ask what I was hoping to accomplish, just assuming it was to evict. His decision on what action to take occurred without ever speaking to me. It was clear that he did not completely read the details I had provided in the email he requested. I would have expected him to ask some questions. My impression was that he is really busy running a "law factory" and does not have the time to differentiate my case from any other similar case. His response appeared formulaic. "If you have Problem A, then you respond with Action B." This approach is probably very effective for him most of the time, provided everything is simple, such as in a non-payment case. I also found him to be a bit condescending and rude when we finally spoke. I ended up hiring a different attorney, and I'm glad I did. Bornstein would not have been right for me. read more

I really like working with David Bornstein. He's * Very fast and efficient * Very easy to connect with * Very well organized * Doesn't over charge at all * Very knowledgeable read more

I have been a San Francisco Realtor for 22 years, and Daniel Bornstein is the best landlord-tenant attorney I have ever worked with - and I have worked with many. I highly recommend anyone with a landlord-tenant issue in the Bay Area to contact him. He is incredibly sharp, extremely knowledgeable & experienced, and very efficient. My clients are always impressed with the end results! read more

We are landlords in San Francisco and have worked with Daniel Bornstein on two separate issues. He is so knowledgeable, helpful and very quick to respond to all communications. If he's not available he always makes sure someone else in his staff are there to help. I highly recommend Daniel and Bornstein Law. Thanks for everything Daniel, see you next time we need your help! read more

Daniel Bornstein is highly efficient, focused and well-informed about owner property rights. His fees are fair. Few might disagree. Most will not. He truly is a legal advocate in a city where one must have one. In my hometown of Chicago, there is no rent control. It works better. If ever even attempted, the citizens would start a revolution. Margie N. read more

Daniel is extremely professional and knowledgeable. We are very much impressed with his efficient service and no waste time attitude. He replies to our emails and questions very quickly and helped us to get a difficult tenant to move. Never thought working with an attorney would be so pleasant and easy. He is an excellent negotiator and actually cared about our benefit. I don't expect much for any attorney but Daniel is above and beyond. He made this unpleasant situation quite manageable. THANK YOU DANIEL... highly recommend read more

I was having problems with a tenant because of a defective rent increase notice I had given him. I thought I could remedy it with a standard apartment association notice, but was told by association staffers that I needed to have a lawyer to draft up the notice tailored to my situation Daniel Bornstein's office happened to be nearby and I took a chance of dropping in unannounced I expected to be told that Daniel would call me later Instead, he saw me right away and drafted up the notice in a few short minutes I was impressed with his efficiency and his tremendous help.Thank you Daniel. Sincerely, Bill Q read more

Thank you for your response and offer, Mr Bornstein, but due to your office nonresponsiveness, we had to go with another lawyer.

This is an update to my 6/1/2016 review: On June 8, 2016 I was contacted by both David Cheung and Daniel Bornstein regarding my review. Their contact was by both telephone and email under the guise of concern that I was not happy with the work done by their firm, but their true agenda was to get me to remove my Yelp review. This began when Daniel Cheung sent an email referencing my Yelp review and stated that a balance of $1304.00 in fees were due on my account but that a "proposal" and "compromise" could be discussed. We had previously discussed this amount months prior as his firm double billing me for the document prep, noticing service and filing fees related to the mistakes made by Bornstein & Bornstein due to a basic lack of ATTENTION. In my follow up telephone conversation with Daniel Bornstein I was asked no less than 3 times to consider removing my review from Yelp and I was offered free legal services to pursue collection of funds from my prior tenant who defaulted, which I declined. Mr. Bornstein also brought up this $1304.00 amount, and had no knowledge of my previous conversation with Daniel Cheung regarding the double billing for their mistakes. On June 24, 2016 I received a reworked billed notice (!) dated December 18, 2015 for the $1304.00 amount. So this is how Bornstein & Bornstein conducts themselves. They want to participate within the Yelp community, but if left negative feedback for legitimate concerns, then coercive and dishonest methods are used to manipulate what the Yelp community has knowledge of which is the BASIS of making an informed decision when choosing a service provider. read more

Daniel Bornstein has an agent (Jonas Judd). He had us fill out an application, approved us, when he realized the age of my friend, he said he rented it to someone else. When we disputed this with Daniel Bornstein, he did nothing about it. I consider this firm horrible. read more

Regardless, there are many former clients who are mad at this rip off Bornstein & Bornstein firm; heard it from others. I have paid millions in attorney fees and dealt with all types of lawyers; there are a bunch of lawyers who will keep taking deposit from many clients and never do much work. I lost 7 months of lost eviction times. I called them hundreds of times and email tons of times. Vexatious do not mean bad clients; as one of mine opponent lawyer said, he never saw anyone who have such a large portfolio. I am proud to be vexatious, most cases against me were for voluntary dismissal, in which I won all of them. So beware, dismissal will count against you, so make sure to fill out or attach the settlement agreement that is in your favor. All mine cases are against different parties and involve different properties; I have no time to waste. Our times are much valuable than lawyers. They are making well over $1,000 an hour because they are ripping us off by doing very little work and know how to triple bill you, you get fired for not knowing how to triple bill your stupid law clients. The vexatious laws are unfair and is to protect the lawyers to make more money; most judges are upset with in pro per parties, because they are saving money and make some lawyers to make less money. You don't drop a case, not even able to finish the unlawful detainer, this is so bad. There are stupid errors coming from the eviction template. I was told only Daniel Bornstein is the only good lawyer in there. This firm like many, hire cheap lawyers and Jonathan is useless. All I want is my full refund, or this will turn into a voluntary shut down of this firm. Or stop trying to net a million dollars into the pocket of the partners. The legal system is unproductive and only enrich the lawyers. Let it be, I am not young anymore. Do I care, I try to. read more

I am a real estate Broker in the City and also have my own investment properties. I've referred many clients to Daniel and have used him on my own properties for years. He knows the rent control regulations inside out.......they can be quite daunting!. He is quick to respond to questions and issues and always figures out a strategic solution to deal with the situation at hand. If you need real estate legal advice with any of your properties, look no further! read more

As many reviewers have stated before me, Daniel Bornstein is a fantastic lawyer and is very knowledgeable about landlord-tenant law. I've had a yelp account for a long time and have never felt compelled to write a review until now. As homeowners, my mother and I were faced with a few situations concerning our tenants. Since being referred to him, he has been a life saver. He has been fairly prompt at answering emails. Getting in contact with him is easy. He really cares about clients and walks you through the legal processes, explaining everything with clarity until you understand. We feel at ease and relieved to know that we have such a knowledgeable person helping our family who doesn't nickel-and-dime us for every question we may have, but instead seeks to help us understand the possible outcomes and solutions to situations. Our experiences with the firm have only been good ones and I highly recommend him. read more

Daniel Bornstein's service is truly indispensable! Being a property owner in San Francisco is frightening: tenant/landlord law is complex, constantly changing, and comprehensively stacked against landlords! When we needed to recover a rental unit for our own use, we were very unsure how to go about the process and were very concerned about making a wrong move. We read reviews and talked to other landlord attorneys in San Francisco, but after talking to Mr. Daniel Bornstein, I was confident he is best for the job, and I was right. Mr. Bornstein was the only attorney who pointed out to me that I can do a relative-move-in and not a owner-move-in. Mr. Bornstein helped us negotiated a complicated buy-out with our tenant, and Mr. Bornstein was there to guide us every step of the way. I was very impressed with Mr. Bornstein's knowledge and efficiency in this entire process. The buy-out process went smoothly, and Mr. Bornstein's fee was VERY reasonable! Subsequently, I have attended many of the free seminars that Mr. Bornstein/Bay Property Group hosts. I think every landlord in San Francisco should be attending these seminars because they are invaluable! Mr. Bornstein is true advocate for San Francisco landlords, and I highly recommend his service. read more

Being a landlord in SF is a bit like being a registered sex offender: everyone hates you! As if the volcanic explosion in real estate prices were the fault of landlords and not, say, the fact that the city isn't building enough affordable housing! It's like owning a property is a crime! Which is where Daniel Bornstein comes in. There's so much animosity and so many crazy laws and regulations yadda yadda yadda, that you, as a landlord, need legal counsel to protect yourself. Daniel B. is smart, calm, and possesses a voluminous knowledge of landlord/tenant law, real property law, city codes. He knows everything. I found out about him through a free seminar at Fort Mason, which was super helpful. It's so complicated now, more than even 10 years ago, and SF tenant laws are tough, so I don't feel like I can just wing it anymore. read more

Daniel Bornstein is a life saver! We came to him in despair after having a bad experience with a very pricey and ineffective attorney (that's for another review). Daniel Bornstein is an expert on San Francisco rent laws. He is very direct and will not waste your time. His knowledge, precision, and confidence is solid and he made us feel at ease during a difficult situation. He is also very aggressive when it comes to litigation. You want this guy on your side! We trust Daniel completely and are so thankful to have found him! He is the only property attorney we will ever go to. read more

Daniel and his team stepped up to help us with a last-minute Move-Out Agreement with our tenant. I found his team to be extremely responsive and knowledgeable. I didn't find him aggressive, just great at providing me with information so that I could make my own informed decision. I'll keep Daniel and his firm in my Contacts for all future needs in the fraught world of landlord-tenancy in San Francisco. read more

Needed a document witness and legal knowledge in a pinch (ie. less than an hour). Was referred to Daniel, and a 10 minute cab ride to the office later, was able to get everything signed and finalized with 15 minutes to spare. Deeply appreciate the flexibility and professionalism, would highly recommend to anyone who needs legal help with real estate related issues. read more

Daniel seems to have written the book on how to engage in a successful tenant eviction process -- and in a way that ended up being mutually convenable and friendly to all parties involved. He coached us through the process and guided us in a way in which we we were able to reach a good conclusion with the tenants of our newly purchased home. If you have a half a heart, pitching someone from the home they've occupied for many years is never easy. We appreciate Daniel's support in making it as painless for all involved as possible -- and in a way that was also economical for us, both in terms of his fees and the size of the settlement we ultimately reached. read more

Daniel Bornstein was incredibly helpful to me regarding a legal question I had. I emailed him in the evening, he returned my email by 6:30 am and we had spoken on the phone by 7:15 am. He answered my question in language I could understand and helped me understand my situation much better, for which I was very grateful. Highly recommended read more

Daniel Bornstein helped me avoid an eviction with a very difficult tenant who was threatening to squat in my house through a messy eviction process. Daniel was very prompt in responding to me, friendly and very knowledgeable. He gave great advice and guidance in how to convince the tenant to leave without going through a painful eviction. read more

I'm a real estate agent in San Francisco, and when my clients have questions about landlord tenant issues, Daniel Bornstein is always the one I turn to. Noone understands the complex, ever changing laws the way he does. Besides being knowledgeable, he is also incredibly responsive. In a business where reaching a lawyer can take days, he is always quick to take the time to provide thorough, proactive solutions. Lastly, I appreciate how straightforward and businesslike he always is. I'd highly recommend him to anyone who needs counsel regarding the intricacies of landlord tenant law. read more

Daniel is efficient, straight to the point, and is great to work with. He assisted my husband and I with a landlord dispute and resolved the situation very quickly for us. I highly recommend Daniel! read more

I just had a great interaction with Daniel of Bornstein & Bornstein. He replied immediately to my initial contact and responded very quickly all along. I am having an issue regarding our rental unit and greatly appreciate his advice and work. read more

Highly recommend Daniel Bornstein. Professional, direct with good results. Like others fair charges too.

Thanks Daniel and Liana for assisting our family to remove a hostile and dangerous tenant from our owner occupied 4-plex. We appreicate your guidance throughout the onerous and lengthy eviction process. Liana did a great job at settlement meeting, successfully avoiding litigation and a costly jury trial. The peace and calm restored within the building is priceless :)! read more

We live almost 75 North of San Francisco and were selling my grandmothers house. Everything was going well until we found a tenant who was not paying all their rent. We tried and failed to remove him from a distance. I was given Daniel's Bornstein name to contact. By telephone and email information was given, processed and within a short time the tenant vacated the property. Daniel, who I never met face to face, was a total professional. During this same time I was experiencing a personal issue which he in our first conversation, offered compassion, which says a lot of character. We've changed locks and are ready to offer our property on the market totally due to Daniel's results. If you're looking for an outstanding attorney, which i would tell my personal friends to contact, call Daniel Bornstein. read more

After an email introduction from my trusted real estate agent, Daniel quickly responded with an explanation of my obligations as a landlord. He was insightful, to the point and summarized my options going forward. What a comfort and relief to have him as a resource! He will be my go to person for legal assistance with my rental property! Loved his quick response time. read more