San Francisco Apartment Sales Q1 2026: Fewer Deals, Same Prices
Updated: Oct 8
By Kevin Caravelli and Steve Caravelli, Caravelli Group, Coldwell Banker Commercial. Published May 2026. Compares closed sales of San Francisco apartment buildings with 5+ units in Q4 2025 (October–December) and Q1 2026 (January–March).
45 San Francisco apartment buildings of 5+ units sold in Q1 2026, down 55% from 100 in Q4 2025, and dollar volume fell 65% to $168.8 million. Prices barely moved: the average was $390,848 per unit, down 3.1%, and the average cap rate was 5.81%.
Key findings
Sales down 55%: 45 buildings sold in Q1 2026, compared with 100 in Q4 2025.
Volume down 65%: total sales volume fell from $481.5 million to $168.8 million.
Prices held: the average price per unit slipped 3.1%, from $403,318 to $390,848, and the average price per square foot fell 4.9%, from $488 to $464.
Cap rates steady: the average cap rate moved from 5.87% to 5.81%.
Large buildings slowed most: only 12 buildings of 12+ units sold, down 73% from 45. Sales of 5–11 unit buildings fell 40%, from 55 to 33.
No large portfolio sales: one November 2025 portfolio of 19 buildings ($119.8 million, 256 units) made up about 25% of Q4 volume. Without it, Q1 volume was down 53%, not 65%.
Rates paused: the Federal Reserve held its benchmark rate at 3.50%–3.75% in January and March 2026, after three cuts in 2025.
Rents still rising: vacancy is tight, and rents in the strongest neighborhoods are up as much as 25% from their pre-COVID highs.
Q1 2026, question by question
How many apartment buildings sold in San Francisco in Q1 2026?
45 apartment buildings with 5 or more units sold in Q1 2026, with 488 units in total. That is down 55% from 100 sales in Q4 2025. 33 were 5–11 unit buildings and 12 had 12 or more units.
What did San Francisco apartment buildings sell for in Q1 2026?
The average price was $390,848 per unit and $464 per square foot, down 3.1% and 4.9% from Q4 2025. Smaller 5–11 unit buildings averaged $423,107 per unit, with a median sale price of $2.70 million. Buildings of 12+ units averaged $302,137 per unit, down 16.2%.
What were apartment cap rates in San Francisco in Q1 2026?
The average cap rate was 5.81%, nearly unchanged from 5.87% in Q4 2025. Cap rates on 12+ unit buildings fell 18 basis points to 5.71%, a sign that buyers still competed hard for the few larger buildings on the market. 5–11 unit buildings averaged 5.84%.
Why did San Francisco apartment sales slow in Q1 2026?
Three things drove the drop:
No large portfolio sales. Q4 2025 included five portfolio sales, led by a 19-building, $119.8 million portfolio on November 26. Q1 2026 had only two small portfolios. Without that one November sale, the volume decline was 53%, not 65%.
Seasonality. Q4 is usually the busiest quarter, driven by 1031 exchange deadlines, tax planning and year-end fund deployment. Q1 is usually the quietest.
Rates stopped falling. The Fed paused after three cuts in 2025, and long-term Treasury yields rose in late February. Deals underwritten on a faster rate-cut path had less room to stretch.
How did interest rates affect San Francisco apartment sales in Q1 2026?
The Federal Reserve held the federal funds rate at 3.50%–3.75% at both its January 28 and March 18, 2026 meetings, after three cuts in 2025 (Federal Reserve, March 18, 2026). Its March statement cited developments in the Middle East as a source of uncertainty. Multifamily loans are priced off the 10-year Treasury, which rose in late February. Agency debt from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the main lenders for buildings this size, was available in the high-4% range.
What were the notable apartment building sales in Q1 2026?
Address | Units | Sale price | Per unit |
1215 Laguna St, Western Addition | 37 | $9,425,000 | $254,730 |
48 Haight St, Hayes Valley | 36 | $8,700,000 | $241,667 |
706 Oak St, Hayes Valley | 10 | $8,127,778 | $812,778 |
924 Fulton St, Alamo Square | 23 | $7,750,000 | $336,957 |
1373 Clay St, Nob Hill | 18 | $7,280,000 | $404,444 |
101 28th St, Noe Valley | 6 | $4,100,000 | $683,333 |
1370 Filbert St, Russian Hill | 5 | $3,420,000 | $684,000 |
The three smaller buildings sold near the top of the per-unit range, a sign that well-located, higher-quality buildings still command premium prices.
What does Q1 2026 mean for San Francisco apartment owners and buyers?
For sellers: the drop was in the number of deals, not in prices. Values held on a per-unit and per-square-foot basis, so well-priced, well-marketed buildings are still trading at strong numbers.
For buyers: Q1 is usually when serious buyers face the least competition. But cap rates on larger buildings fell and sale-to-list ratios rose above 100%, so competition for the best buildings is still strong. If rates fall later in 2026, expect it to pick up quickly.
What to watch: when portfolio buyers come back. Institutional capital tends to return quickly once conditions settle, and its return is one of the clearest leading indicators in this market.
Q4 2025 vs Q1 2026: the numbers
Citywide prices moved by single digits while the number of sales fell 55%. The 12+ unit segment fell furthest on both counts.
All San Francisco apartment buildings, 5+ units
All 5+ units | Q4 '25 | Q1 '26 | Change |
Sales | 100 | 45 | −55% |
Volume | $481.5M | $168.8M | −65% |
Avg price | $4.82M | $3.75M | −22% |
Units sold | 1,296 | 488 | −62% |
Avg per unit | $403,318 | $390,848 | −3.1% |
Avg per sq ft | $488 | $464 | −4.9% |
Cap rate | 5.87% | 5.81% | −6 bps |
5–11 unit buildings
5–11 units | Q4 '25 | Q1 '26 | Change |
Sales | 55 | 33 | −40% |
Volume | $166.6M | $96.7M | −42% |
Avg price | $3.03M | $2.93M | −3.3% |
Median price | $2.58M | $2.70M | +4.9% |
Avg per unit | $438,264 | $423,107 | −3.5% |
Avg per sq ft | $503 | $475 | −5.6% |
Cap rate | 5.85% | 5.84% | −1 bp |
Sale-to-list | 100.8% | 96.8% | −4 pts |
12+ unit buildings
12+ units | Q4 '25 | Q1 '26 | Change |
Sales | 45 | 12 | −73% |
Volume | $314.9M | $72.1M | −77% |
Avg price | $7.00M | $6.00M | −14% |
Units sold | 926 | 254 | −73% |
Avg per Unit | $360,605 | $302,137 | −16% |
Avg per Sq Ft | $469 | $431 | −8.0% |
Cap Rate | 5.89% | 5.71% | −18 bps |
Sale-to-list | 98.2% | 101.3% | +3.1 pts |
How this data was compiled
This report compares closed sales of San Francisco apartment buildings with 5 or more units in Q4 2025 (October 1 to December 31) and Q1 2026 (January 1 to March 31). Data comes from MLS sale records and Caravelli Group's database of San Francisco multifamily sales.
Figures reflect closed sales recorded as of April 2026. Q1 2026 numbers may rise slightly as late-reported sales are recorded.
Averages are simple averages across the sales in each group.
A portfolio sale means one buyer bought three or more buildings in a single deal.
This report is for information only and is not a forecast or an appraisal.
About the authors
Kevin Caravelli is a partner at Caravelli Group and an investment sales agent in the San Francisco office of Coldwell Banker Commercial Realty, specializing in multifamily and mixed-use buildings. DRE #01988049 · 415.271.8517
Steve Caravelli founded Caravelli Group and has nearly four decades of experience and more than $1.7 billion in closed transactions. DRE #00879834 · 415.706.0008
Caravelli Group advises owners and investors on the sale of San Francisco apartment buildings, focusing on the 5-to-75 unit middle market.
FAQ
Did San Francisco apartment building prices drop in 2026? Not much in Q1 2026. The average price per unit fell 3.1% from Q4 2025, to $390,848, and the median price for 5–11 unit buildings rose 4.9% to $2.70 million. The big drop was in the number of sales, not prices.
Why is San Francisco's rental market strong when tech jobs are down? San Francisco and San Mateo counties lost about 4,400 jobs in 2025, yet vacancy is tight and rents are rising. San Francisco chief economist Ted Egan has suggested that tech-adjacent workers are moving back to the city even when the hiring itself is remote. Owners in the Marina, Pacific Heights, Russian Hill, North Beach and Hayes Valley regularly see 5 or more qualified applicants per unit.
Is Q1 a good time to buy a San Francisco apartment building? Q1 is usually the quietest quarter, so buyers often face less competition. In Q1 2026, though, the best larger buildings still sold above asking, at 101.3% of list price on average.
What is my San Francisco apartment building worth? Caravelli Group provides confidential opinions of value based on current sales in your district. Contact Kevin Caravelli at 415.271.8517 or Steve Caravelli at 415.706.0008.
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