SF: Sisters are Doing it for Themselves- Single Women Buyers, part 1: Van Ness Ave.

These days the real estate market spells w,o,m,a,n. This trend has risen steadily since the year 2000, to the point at which realtors and developers have taken notice and in fact market directly to single women: between 2000 and 2003, 30% of condos were sold to single women, and single women accounted for 20% of homebuyers nationwide. In San Francisco, realtors note that most single women buy into buildings, choosing condos or TIC’s as their first home. According to Sfgate columnist Carol Lloyd, one realtor tells us that “They {single women} are more likely to buy into new buildings, with security systems, guards, front-door man, camera and things like built-in gyms,” she says. “They often buy condos or partner together to buy TICs.” This preference could easily be attributed to expense, since TIC’s can range from the mid $200,000’s and condos from the high $300,000’s whereas a single family house is rarely listed under $600,000. But the same realtor notes that “her clients’ taste in homes tends to run more toward safety and community, with a preference for stable urban areas over ‘fringy, up-and-coming neighborhoods’ that might afford more space but less convenience or security.”

With that in mind, I decided to review some of the areas in the city that are both relatively safe and that offer TIC or condo complexes. The first such area is Van Ness Ave. from the Civic Center and north to Bay St.

Before you recoil in horror–and if you already live in SF, thinking about the population that hangs around the Market Street side of the Civic, you might be questioning my intelligence–realize I mean Van Ness, starting at Franklin and continuing out to hit Bay Street (getting progressively more expensive and swanky as it goes). This stretch of avenue is commercial and residential, with a multitude of apartment and condo complexes, stately old buildings, businesses, restaurants, hotels, bars, and theaters. Thus is draws a great deal of legitimate traffic, mostly by day, but enough at night to make a single girl feel safe walking after dark. The area is also very convenient. You are centrally located to all the city’s offerings and can easily hop on the 101, the 80, or the 280 to escape the city all together.

Further, MUNI and BART both serve this location well, and most everything you need to survive is walkable, meaning a car would not be necessary at all and thus eliminating the need for parking. Yet many condo complexes–plentiful here–include one car parking.

A condo complex at 1000 Van Ness

Below are some zipcodes to search Redfin along Van Ness and/or the myriad alleys and side streets that crisscross this avenue.

94103
94102
94109