SFRentalStats:

Note: This site has zero affilitaion with craigslist. None, nil, nada, zip.

Note #2: If the listings or pages are blank, please wait 30 seconds and refresh. The listings and graphs are being updated.

Updates:

2/25/2008 Added chat feature.
Just in case you have any questions, you can get talk to me directly.

2/20/2008 ARGH! HEATMAPS ARE DOWN! (sadly)
This is totally out of my control. This is due to the fact that the company that provides the heatmaps (geocommons) has taken the mapping application offline as they come out of beta. I hope they get back up shorty, and I hope they keep the heatmapping a free (or at least affordable) service! But overall, they have an amazing product.
As soon as they have them back up, I will be launching the same analysis on Manhattan.

1/06/2007: A new year... new analysis.
Since this year showed perhaps on of the biggest spiks in rent, I wanted to see what areas of the city were most effected. Hence I have mapped what areas of the city are chaning in rent, done in 1/4 mile intervals. Not that, in order to get good statistics, I have only mapped 1 and 2 bedrooms, and small numbers lead to large changes, and unrepresentative data. Check it out on the "Overall stats / note" to your left.

Yes, a few cities (Boston, NYC, Seattle) are being collected in the background. The new sites are being built as you read this (either that or I am cloning/purifying some protiein.... God. I need new hobbies).

Summary:

This site presents summary data from an ongoing database of the rental market in San Francisco.
This allows us to display the cost of renting on a neighborhood basis, in a heatmap, or binned in 1/2 mile intervals.
This database is gleaned solely from craigslist.
This graphs and plots within are updated nightly, save the heatmaps, which will be updated monthly.

Please note: Some of the Google-map functions do NOT appear to work in Safari 2 or Internet Explorer. Please use firefox! (The heatmaps do work, but the spatial overlays do not.)
I also have been informed that opera works well also.

Extra-double-plus-important Disclamers:

• In the same, open, free, and community-driven spirit of craigslist, this site has zero financial incentives. No google ads... nothing. Just a link to a shirt I feel represents the spirit of the city.
• This site has no affiliation with craigslist, google maps or anyone/anything else. We only identify with hotpockets which are tasty and lethal. We also like furry things, and fear spiky things.
• We are not responsible for the validity of data within, we just take the listings, store them, and plot them.
• We are not responsible for any consequenses, results, or harm that occurs from misuse of this data. In fact, viewing this site constitues misuse. So we are off the hook for anything you do.

Thanks to:

• GeoCommons for making heatmapping on google maps possible. Check out their site. They are nice.
• Craigslist for making a great and free resource for us all, and for creating delicious data to map. I hope they are nice.
• Muni for being constantly broken, and filling me with infinite rage.

Yes, I am willing to help other people learn how to do spatial mashups. Just email me.

Something broken? Questions? Comments? Suggestions?
email: rentalstats@mullinslab2.ucsf.edu

Old Updates:

10/05/2007: Issues of scalability: Change of plans.
Due to the sheer amount of work I have to do, and trying to figure out my life (Do I stay a researcher? Become a coder / database monkey?). I have decided to only stop at SF and NYC stats. If I move to Boston (take the positions at Harvard / MIT), I will map Boston also. Sorry. I just am utterly slammed. I will make the existing maps as rich as possible, with crime data, property values, distance to transportation, nightlife, etc. But making this a large scale site working on every listing market is unfeasible. This is a hobby, not a business.

10/04/2007: Reiterating the meaning of "Non-commercial".
Ok. I need to be quite clear about something. I have recieved many emails from realtors, VCs, escrow firms, and others wanting to buy data, encouraging me to put ads on here, or to mold this into some sort of commercial site. I can't and won't do this.

Why Not? First, this is not my data. Hence, any attempt to capitalize on it is wrong, both ethically and legally.

Second, This site is supposed to be fun. A nerdy hobby, that is could be used as a public resource for tenants. This is simply something to help people like me understand the rental market... not for anyone to make money from. Me included. You too.

Third, Perhaps I have been in science for too long, but such financial concepts/dealings/things/people make my head hurt.

9/28/2007: Wow. Rents have spiked rather severely.
Here are the changes in the median rents 6 months ago to now.
1 bedrooms: $1750 to $2040
2 bedrooms: $2400 to $2900
3 bedrooms: $3000 - $3775
Rent per room: $1450 - $1700
Check it out here.

Feedback:
Thanks to Kron4, boingboing, digg, stumbleupon, the San Francisco Chronicle, and local blogs for the flood of traffic. This has led to hundreds of emails. I very much appreciate the feedback, insight, and apprecation, it makes all of this worthwhile.

I have also heard many reports of landlords using this site to justify higher rents. This makes me very sad... You guys are pricing all of the musicians, artists, and scientists out of the city. Shame.. your actions will turn this city into a very boring, rich place.

I also heard that UCSF student housing sent this out as justification for the ridiculiously high costs of their student housing.
Yes they are at market rate... for SOMA... a region that graduate students can barely afford with UCSF pays us.
In my opinion, don't listen to them, move out while you can. The real city is much more fun than an overpriced Science Dorm.

Things in progress:
1. New York is coming along great, and should be very interesting when it is up. I am attempting to make the grid run along the streets, in a block by block basis.
I need New Yorkers who are familiar with the city to help me beta test the site, so email me please.
2. I am modding the heatmapping to show what areas have increased/decreased in price. Stay tuned.
3. I am attempting to get crime data into the San Francisco maps. Unfortunately, the San francisco GIS red tape is a bit hard to penetrate, and they have not responded to emails. I am still working on it.