What $3,150 rents you in San Francisco right now

Welcome to Curbed Comparisons, a regular column exploring what you can rent for a set dollar amount in different neighborhoods. Is one person's studio another person's townhouse? Let's find out. Today's price: $3,150.

↑ A couple of miles makes a big difference in a city like San Francisco. In the Richmond, for example, on Ninth Avenue, $3,150/month nets a two-bedroom, one-bath apartment with a deck that runs the length of the unit, plus a garage and a backyard (albeit it shared with other residents of the building). None of the proportions seem particularly remarkable and the ad does not mention a pet policy one way or another, but there’s at least room to stretch out.

↑ On the other hand, move on over to the Mission and the exact same $3,150/month rent may go only so far as a studio on Guerrero and 23rd Street. So snug that the bed is bumping up against the fireplace, which has since been replaced by a heater. No pets here either. On the other hand, it’s right next to Dolores Park and the main Mission drag, which is nice, but it’s also cramped. Is it worth giving up the leg room?

↑ Then again, maybe studio living doesn’t have to be quite so compact. At Lombard Place near Polk Street (about two blocks from the curves, where Russian Hill neighbors are still fretting about tourist traffic and redwoods) a studio asks $3,095/month. And while not exactly a palace of proportions, at least there’s no risk of the fireplace crisping the sheets. The odd little bay off the kitchen presumably serves as a dining room. Pets are good here, though they’ll bump the rent up by $75/month, so they’d better put in some overtime cuteness to make up the difference.

↑ To branch out, try Glen Park. Although this place is only a single-bedroom and one-bath home, it’s at least a full single-family house unto itself (970 square feet), the only one on the list. It comes with a large backyard plus garage (set into the lower half of the home’s mismatched facade of lemon-yellow up top and brick-red on the bottom). Pets here pass on a “case by case” basis. The price: $3,100/month.

↑ Last but not least, enterprising renters could always do worse than a one-bedroom, one-bath apartment for $3,100/month in Pacific Heights east of Lafayette Park. The Edwardian building dates to 1926 and the ad makes a selling point of the steam heat. No pets, though.