Living in the SF Shipyard: A Two-Year Resident's Perspective…read more For the past two years, I've called the SF Shipyard home. Nestled at the end of a peninsula, it was once a quiet, safe, and charming neighborhood with delightful views of the bay and a scenic path adorned with large sculptures. It felt like a hidden gem--peaceful, warm, and full of promise. But 2025 brought change. With three new apartment buildings opening, the influx of residents has shifted the dynamic. Crime has increased enough that discussions about hiring full-time security have begun--at an additional cost to our already high HOA dues. Parking, once manageable, has become a daily challenge. Being on a peninsula means overflow traffic has only one direction to go: up Kirkwood and Jerrold. Pros of Living in the SF Shipyard * Affordability (Relatively Speaking): Your dollar stretches 2.5-3x farther than elsewhere in SF. No more throwing money away on rent. * Warmer Climate: It's about 10 degrees warmer in summer. * Peace and Quiet: It's still one of the quietest neighborhoods in the city. * Scenic Views: Water views are a daily luxury. * Modern Living: Homes come with decent appliances, in-unit washer/dryer, air conditioning, and energy-efficient features. * Outdoor Spaces: India Basin Park and two other parks nearby offer green space. * Walkability to Unique Spots: Archimedes Banya is walkable, and Pier 70 & 80 events are nearly within reach. * Community Events: Frisco Fridays add a fun, local vibe. Cons of Living in the SF Shipyard * Odors: Occasionally, the sewage treatment plant makes its presence known. * Property Value: Don't expect significant appreciation, if any. * Mello-Roos Fees: The city doesn't seem to be fulfilling its obligations with these funds. * Hidden Costs: High HOA dues, move-in/out fees, and Mello-Roos -make it less affordable than it appears. * Limited Amenities: No nearby grocery stores--you'll need to go to Bernal, Potrero, or the Mission. * Restricted Access: Much of the surrounding open space is off-limits due to radiation or naval restrictions. * Safety Concerns: Little to no police presence. Drivers often speed, run red lights, and ignore stop signs. SFPD rarely enforces traffic laws here. * Car Dependency: You need a car, and parking is a major issue. Without a designated spot, you must be home by 5-5:30pm to find parking. Going out at night risks losing your spot. Guests struggle to find parking at any time. Public transportation at night feels unsafe. * Madison Building Issues: Electrical issues are widespread--13 owners had to band together to get the developer to act. (Personally, I'm on my fourth set of breakers and second HVAC compressor.) The EST3 alarm goes off almost every weekend and can blare for 48-72 hours if it happens outside business hours. Hosting a party in the Pavilion costs over $200, on top of $700+/mo HOA dues. Final Thoughts I moved here for the peace, the views, and the modern amenities. I wanted to stop renting and avoid being house poor. But with the current growing pains, I can't recommend moving to the SF Shipyard--especially not to the Madison building.

Before you should deal with Lennar be aware that Lennar is 2nd worst builder in USA in terms of…read morecustomer satisfaction. I got to experience this first hand. I signed a purchase agreement on a home. A week later they dropped prices on similar homes by $22K. We requested them to adjust the price as any decent national builder would do. But Lennar doesn't give a s**t about you once you are trapped in the contract. So they denied. Never again in my life I'm doing business with this company. I advise you all to also add price drop contingency in your purchase agreement if you decide to deal with the devil or better yet stay away.

Before working with Flat Fee Buyer, we had worked with a few well-known "top" Bay Area agents and…read morecame away disappointed. Despite their reputations, we didn't feel like much time was spent educating us on the market, helping us think through pricing strategy, or guiding us through difficult decisions. At times, it felt like the expectation was simply to figure things out ourselves, waive contingencies, and make the highest offer, all while following the traditional commission structure. Our experience with Flat Fee Buyer was very different. Vikrant, Hira were responsive, practical, and easy to work with throughout the process. Special shoutout to Kyle for quick follow-ups and great turnaround times. Vikrant was also incredibly helpful in sharing his honest perspective, when we were exhausted from getting outbid and starting to consider areas that were not originally our top choice. Especially appreciate his quick turnaround and countless deep dives on disclosures In a competitive Bay Area market, every dollar matters. Flat Fee Buyer's model made a lot of sense to us because the level of effort in representing a buyer does not necessarily change based on the price of the home. The rebate was meaningful and allowed us to put that money directly toward remodeling our new home. Overall, we felt supported, informed, and better aligned with this model. It feels fair, transparent, and something that should become much more common in the Bay Area. Highly recommend Flat Fee Buyer.

Buying a house in the Bay Area can be incredibly stressful, but Hira, Vikrant, and the rest of the…read moreteam made the process feel smooth and manageable from start to finish. Communication was always fast, clear, and consistent, which gave us a lot of confidence throughout the process. Their understanding of the local market (especially seller and agent strategies) played a huge role in helping us win the bid on our new home. At $10k, their service is absolutely worth it. We're incredibly grateful and could not recommend them enough.

We've been working with Andy for the last several months on our 3rd and 4th story addition project…read morein upper Noe Valley. Communication: Andy is organized, efficient, and clear in his communications with us. He was also upfront with us from the beginning about the potential challenges our project would face, from city building regulations to neighbor considerations, but always presented solutions to the issues. Design: Andy has been able to take our high level requirements and turn them into an elegant and practical design that is above and beyond what we originally imagined. His in-depth knowledge of the city codes has also been reassuring - we really appreciate his focus on the goal of making this a smooth, low drama process. Process and Cost: Finally, Andy's wealth of vetted and reliable industry contacts has helped us determine a working budget early in the process - this has been invaluable for ensuring we're comfortable with the major changes to come. Andy and his contacts have all provided reasonable pricing, considering the scale of the project we are undertaking. We're really happy working with Andy, and wouldn't hesitate to recommend him for any projects in SF!

We've just completed our 2nd Major Remodel with Andy after having the pleasure of working with him…read moreseveral years ago on our 2nd story addition. Our 2nd project with Andy included the main level Kitchen, Family area, Mudroom and Powder Room. We were so impressed with Andy's design talent the first time, that we were certain we wanted to work with Andy to tackle the design challenges for the second go round. Andy again was integral to the success of the project. After receiving an initial estimate from a contractor we had worked with in the past that was higher than expected, Andy was able to offer another contractor more in line with our budget. After listening to our thoughts and concerns, Andy offered several design options, and again we were really excited with the finalized approach. Andy was able to incorporate some specific design details we wanted, and then build upon them and make them a unique feature for our project. When we were facing technical challenges with the millwork detail we incorporated into the project, Andy suggested a solution that the millworker went with to solve the problem. Andy again was great to work with through the design, both listening and offering design options we hadn't thought of. His attention to design detail really made the project. His knowledge of construction and cost were such a great asset to making our project a success. He followed through with the project from beginning to end. We Hired Andy 2x as our Architect, we highly recommend him for your project!

We hired Aura Building Company to completely demolish & rebuild our house. This project included a…read moredriveway, reframing the house,3 bathrooms, 4 bedrooms, flooring, full House electrcial and plumbing etc. The project took about 6 months and Aura Building Company pretty much did all the work from permitting to Design to construction and punch out. This company is a one stop shop with amazing design team, highly skilled group of builders & engineers. We loved the entire experience and the final result. It was like we were on HGTV. They keep us informed, engaged and incorporated our input throughout the project. I am so happy we found this company and they took us as clients and would recommend them for any home project.

We recently bought a new place and we wanted to do skim coating the walls of the whole house…read moreincluding the ceiling. It's a big project and It was the end of the last year - holidays season during the time. So we had been through a lot of difficulties for finding the right business that is responsive and reliable to do the job, till our real estate agent introduced us Aura Design Villa. They are very professional and easy to work with since the very beginning. AK, who is the project manager carefully inquired about all our needs and concerns. He spent a lot of time to answered all questions we had and communicated well in details. During the whole process, the crew leader Z and the crew was updating us the progress within group chat everyday and constantly communicating necessary details, they worked very hard to completed an efficient and wonderful work. I'm someone who pays attention to details and because this is the first house we own, we are highly cared that all the finishes meet our needs. Therefore, we really appreciate the whole crew understands our needs so well and how flexible the crew was. You guys are true dream builders, thank you for helping us to complete our dream. Super highly recommend Aura Design Villa, will definitely work with them again. And I will keep updating the comments here when I have more :)

We engaged with Edri construction to perform a remodel of our small kitchen in a 1925 San Francisco…read moreFourplex. I would consider this a challenging project as we had limited space to work with and wanted to build in more counter/cabinet space while also adding in a dishwasher and replacing other appliances. This required new electrical and plumbing. The team was unfazed by the scope and was ready to start following week. From the outset, the process was highly organized making decisions simple and hands-off as possible for us. They immediately sought out all required permits while keeping us informed on the important details only and handling all the permitting minutia themselves. David and his team completed every aspect of the job with pride and precision. The team were true masters in their trades and completed all parts of the job from plumbing electrical drywall appliance installation tiling - everything from start to finish. They were also friendly and took extreme care to protect all common areas. The kitchen came out great with any instance where we had a follow up adjustment, they always took the time to fix it until we were happy. Communication was outstanding. On top of everything else, each interaction with this company was an absolute pleasure. Everyone who worked on our kitchen obviously took tremendous pride in their work from demolition to completion. We Would highly recommend Edri Constucion for a top-notch kitchen remodel.

Five stars for Edri Construction! We live in a 1942 home in SF and were dealing with a foundation…read morethat leaked every time it rained. I showed the issue to the owner, and instead of a high-pressure pitch, he gave us several honest options to fix it. I'll admit I was dreading the concrete work--I expected a massive, dusty headache. However, the crew was incredible. They made the entire process as smooth as possible and were extremely clean and respectful of our space while they worked. They actually finished the project right on time, which is rare these days! Pricing was fair and transparent, with no surprises. As you can see from the before and after photos, the transformation is amazing. What used to be a leaky problem area is now a gorgeous media room that we love spending time in. If you want a contractor who is clear, honest, and does high-quality work, call these guys. I definitely will be using them again.

We had a great experience working with Massoudi Consulting Engineers. Rod is incredibly…read moreknowledgeable and brought up several important structural and design considerations that we hadn't even thought about. He clearly has deep experience, especially with projects in San Francisco - he pointed out a number of intricacies and local requirements that only someone familiar with SF codes and processes would know. It really gave us peace of mind knowing we were in good hands. Tiffany and Vivian were also wonderful to work with - very responsive, detail-oriented, and efficient. They kept everything moving smoothly and were quick to answer our (many!) questions. You can tell they know exactly what they're doing, which makes the whole process so much easier. Overall, the team is professional, experienced, and extremely well-versed in the kind of nuance that SF projects demand. Highly recommend!

I've been working with the engineers from MCE since before they were MCE. They've been my gold…read morestandard for quality engineering on jobs big and small for over a decade. I can recommend them without hesitation or reservation.

I met Kira and Danny at a listing in Noe Valley across the street from our home. It was a luxury…read moreview property that they had listed. I was impressed with their attention to detail and their professional approach to prospective buyers. When it came time to sell our view home, I reached out and agreed to list the house with them. They became partners with us in a much longer journey than any of us expected as we put the house on the market in the Fall of 2022, which ended up being dead for homes at our price point. We successfully sold the home in the spring of this year in a still challenging market. We were happy with the value we received for the home and grateful for their work to sell it successfully. However, the real testament was in the systematic way they prepared the home, worked with us closely in the extended sale process, put many hours in open houses and showings, and even ensured the house was always in tip-top condition through a very wet rainy season. Finally, coordinating with the home buyer and ensuring their experience was just as stellar. We then purchased a new house in a different part of the city. We had the opportunity to compare our experience with Kira and Danny with other listing agents. We were blown away by the difference in attention to detail. Our home was in new condition when we put it on the market. Their team took the lead in the work needed to get it in that state. There were no homes we toured that approached their level of preparedness and care. High standards, strong work ethic, solid results. I highly recommend them to anyone selling their home. They are indeed an exceptional team.

I've requested to be removed from their list multiple times, unfortunately they have decided to run…read morea mailing list with no unsubscribe option which is illegal. If they cannot manage to take me off their list, I would not trust they could broker your deal.

I honestly cannot say enough good things about Maven Maintenance…read more To start, Craig, Vinny, and their team kept constant communication with us on the process regarding the repairs we needed. They gave up front and transparent pricing that was very reasonable. In regards of when they got to work, as soon as we signed the contract they were ready to go the next day. The work they did was repairing drywall on our ceiling and wall after a leak. You cannot even see that there was a hole there before. Blended beautifully and the matched the color to be identical. When our water mitigation company left a mess, their team not only cleaned up after them but painstakingly covered our floors to protect them. We just moved into our home and have a list of renovations we would like to do. We are 100% only using Maven Maintenance.

I worked with Craig and their team on a garage repair project. They did an excellent job, and…read morerepaired it like there was no damage before. One of his guys, Felix was always punctual, communicative and easy to work with. Will definitely consider them for future projects as well.

Call Ricardo at 415.286.4696 before you call any other contractor about home renovation…read moreconstruction needs. He is very good at it and goes the extra mile to satisfy you as his customer. Everyone else thought it would be best to install a new shower pan. The prefabs are not easy to find in the size we needed. Ricardo tailor-made one that is both functional and aesthetically pleasing. He identified a shower glass installer without my having to ask. I am very pleased with the tiling work as well. I called before the walk-through to ask him who he would recommend for hauling away the debris away. He was already taking it to the dump. Most of it was from the other contractors. I have contacted and gone through a lot of contractors for this renovation. Ricardo was the only one that could do all of the remaining work. That was a relief, but the quality of his work at a competitive price is what makes him and his crew stand out. You will not be disappointed. Thank you, Ricardo, for making my home beautiful.

Ricardo was professional from beginning to end. He was extremely prompt in returning my call, and…read morewas very informative and helpful in explaining what the process was. I needed some new windows installed in my home, and Ricardo came the next day, and finished the job within 3 days. Not only was the work exceptional, but the price was fair. They were in and out, extremely professional, and very informative throughout the process. I highly recommend Ricardo with window installation or any related work you might need.