Curbed Comparisons: What $4,000 rents 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: $4,000.

↑ There’s no better place to start than the Bayview, with a humble looking house that has a lot to brag about. From the curb, this three-bedroom, two-bath home looks quaint, but walk through the door and it becomes a big, beautiful space. Walk through out back and you will find a positively tranquil and enchanting garden. (Which includes a lemon tree, meaning that in this case life is quite literally giving the renter lemons.) The rent on this 1,500-square-foot home on Holliser Avenue is $4,000/month even. It seems odd that a home with a big backyard should go without dogs, but at least cats make the grade.

↑ Those shopping for a lease with more curb appeal may want to take a look at this three-bedroom, one-bath house in Ingleside Terraces, a few blocks from SFSU. While the yard is not quite so Narnia-like, the facade gives a lot more to work with than its Bayview counterpart, along with a slight break on the rent: $3,925/month. No pets though; life is full of trade-offs.

↑ For a higher standard of beauty (six stories high, in this case), the Haight has 100 Broderick, a gorgeous Beaux-Arts building from 1928. The building is actually on the green side, but these photos suggest a baby-blue hue makes it look as if it’s about to soar off into the sky behind it. The one-bed, one-bath apartment’s windows, French doors, and antique fixtures certainly enhance the deco appeal, but these days the building is trying to market itself as a green 21st Century building for the alleged efficiency of its homes. It will run you $3,995/month. Pets are fine under 40 pounds. So no ponies.

↑ For old-school charm, the Clocktower Building on Second and Bryant streets still rocks the 1907 industrial look better than almost any place in the city after more than a century. A one-bedroom Clocktower loft, with its venerable old bricks and 1,000-plus square feet of live/work space, runs $3,950/month. No pets allowed and presumably no apologies, since it remains a highly envied address.

↑ Finally, anyone who envies proximity to the Castro (an eternally popular Comparisons selection) can net a one-bedroom, one-bath, pet-friendly garden apartment on Castro Street in Duboce Triangle just a couple of block from the hubbub for $3,995/month. It might be the best of all worlds, at least for anyone who likes the scattered tile floor covering more than half the unit.