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Chinatown Housing Data
Chinatown has 7,491 housing units across 6 census tracts, a mid-sized neighborhoods in San Francisco. The median rent is $887, the median owner-occupied home is worth $1,461,000, and 90.8% of occupied homes are rented. On today's market, Zillow puts asking rent at $4,044 and the typical home at $1,243,000 as of August 2026.
That rent is the lowest of 38 neighborhoods and 64% below the citywide figure of $2,476. The figures below come from the Census Bureau's American Community Survey, rolled up from tract level as described in the methodology, and are part of the San Francisco housing overview.
Ranks are among the 38 San Francisco neighborhoods on this site. "Of 38" means 38 neighborhoods with at least 500 homes. Census figures are ACS 2020-2024; the last four cards are Zillow market data for August 2026.
Who owns and who rents in Chinatown
Of 6,258 occupied homes in Chinatown, 5,684 are rented and 574 are owner-occupied. That renter share of 90.8% is the 5th highest of 38 neighborhoods, 29.0 points above the citywide figure of 61.8%. Households average 1.91 people, 1.72 in owned homes and 1.93 in rentals.
See every neighborhood ranked by renter share or by homeownership rate.
What rent costs in Chinatown
The median gross rent in Chinatown is $887 a month, estimated from the rent distribution of 5,547 renter households. Gross rent includes utilities. That is the lowest of 38 neighborhoods and 64% below the citywide figure of $2,476.
51.6% of renter households here spend 30 percent or more of their income on rent, the Census threshold for being rent-burdened, and 28.4% spend half or more. Citywide, 39.6% of renters are rent-burdened. Compare on the median rent, rent burden and severe rent burden rankings.
What homes are worth in Chinatown
Owners in Chinatown put the median value of their home at $1,461,000, the 19th lowest of 37 neighborhoods and 3% above the citywide figure of $1,425,000. This is the owner's own estimate as reported to the Census, not a sale price, so it runs below market in a rising market.
The homeowner vacancy rate, homes for sale as a share of the owner stock, is 0.0%. See the home value ranking.
What Chinatown costs on the market right now
Zillow puts the typical home in Chinatown at $1,243,000 as of August 2026, the 16th lowest of 37 neighborhoods and 13% below the citywide figure of $1,425,000. That is up 14.6% over the past year and down 3.9% over five years, and the one-year change is the 19th lowest of 37 neighborhoods. The Census value above is what owners said their home was worth, averaged over the 2020-2024 survey years. Zillow's figure is a model of what homes would sell for now, so the two are expected to differ, and Zillow's is the one to use for today's market.
The typical asking rent on a new listing in Chinatown is $4,044 a month as of August 2026, by Zillow's rent index, the 8th lowest of 38 neighborhoods and 14% below the citywide figure of $4,682. Asking rent is up 30.2% over the past year. Current tenants here pay a median of $887 including utilities, so a new lease costs about 356% more than what the typical renter already pays. That premium is the highest of 38 neighborhoods. Rent control, long tenancies and subsidized housing all hold paid rents below asking rents, so the widest gaps are where tenants have stayed longest or where much of the stock is below market, and the citywide premium is 89.1%.
Rankings: current home values, asking rents and the asking rent premium.
Source: Zillow Research, ZHVI and ZORI, August 2026. The home value is the average of Zillow's index for Chinatown, the Zillow area inside this boundary. Asking rent is Zillow's ZIP code index for 94108 and 94133, weighted by the homes in each ZIP. Zillow's areas do not match the Planning Department boundaries exactly. Method on the methodology page.
How many homes sit empty in Chinatown
1,233 of Chinatown's 7,491 housing units were vacant when surveyed, a vacancy rate of 16.5%, the 9th highest of 38 neighborhoods and 4.3 points above the citywide figure of 12.2%. The Census counts a unit as vacant for any reason, including homes between tenants, second homes and units held off the market, so this is broader than the rental vacancy rate.
The rental vacancy rate, units for rent as a share of the rental stock, is 10.9% against 6.7% citywide. Why the vacant units are empty:
Rankings: overall vacancy, rental vacancy and homeowner vacancy. Every reason above has its own ranking of all 38 neighborhoods: for rent, rented but not yet occupied, for sale, sold but not yet occupied, for seasonal or occasional use and other vacant homes.
What kind of buildings Chinatown has
4.5% of homes in Chinatown are single-family houses, 12.7% are in two-to-four-unit buildings, and 56.5% are in buildings with 20 or more units. The single-family share is the 6th lowest of 38 neighborhoods.
Rankings by single-family share, share in two-to-four-unit buildings and share in large buildings, or by each building type: detached, attached, 2 units, 3-4 units, 5-9 units, 10-19 units, 20-49 units and 50+ units.
When Chinatown's homes were built
63.2% of Chinatown's housing was built before 1940, the 4th highest of 38 neighborhoods, and 2.3% has been built since 2010. Citywide the pre-1940 share is 45.2%.
Rankings by pre-1940 housing and new construction, or by decade: 1940s, 1950s, 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, 1990s, 2000s, 2010s and 2020+.
Household income in Chinatown
The median household income in Chinatown is $31,500, the lowest of 38 neighborhoods and 78% below the citywide figure of $140,600. Income and rent together drive the rent burden figure above. See the income ranking.
Overcrowding and turnover in Chinatown
22.9% of occupied homes in Chinatown have more than one person per room, the Census definition of overcrowding, the highest of 38 neighborhoods. Citywide it is 6.0%. 6.5% of households moved in 2023 or later, a rough measure of turnover, against 6.2% citywide. Rankings: overcrowding, recent movers.
How Chinatown's housing has changed
Between the 2010-2014 and 2020-2024 surveys, the median rent in Chinatown went from $554 to $887, up 21% after inflation. The median home value went from $959,000 to $1,461,000, up 15% in real terms, and median household income rose 19% in real terms.
| Survey | Population | Housing units | Renters | Vacancy | Median rent | Median value | Median income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010-2014 | 14,597 | 7,349 | 92.1% | 9.6% | $554 | $959k | $20k |
| 2015-2019 | 14,438 | 7,628 | 93.9% | 9.5% | $686 | $958k | $25k |
| 2020-2024 | 12,089 | 7,491 | 90.8% | 16.5% | $887 | $1.46M | $32k |
Decennial census, 2010 and 2020
The full census counts every home rather than sampling, so these figures have no margin of error. Chinatown's population shrank 1% between 2010 and 2020 while its housing stock shrank 3%.
| Census | Population | Housing units | Occupied | Vacant | Vacancy rate | Renters |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | 14,542 | 7,851 | 7,135 | 716 | 9.1% | 94.4% |
| 2020 | 14,455 | 7,617 | 6,870 | 747 | 9.8% | 93.8% |
Where Chinatown is
Chinatown is one of the 41 Analysis Neighborhoods the San Francisco Planning Department uses for reporting, made up of 6 2020 census tracts. It sits in supervisor district 3.
Nearby: Financial District/South Beach, Nob Hill, North Beach, Russian Hill. Or see all neighborhoods.
Census tracts: 061102, 061101, 011800, 011300, 010701, 010702. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates (tables B25001 to B25077, B19001, B25008, B25014, B25024, B25034, B25038, B25070), 2010 SF1 and 2020 DHC; DataSF Analysis Neighborhoods crosswalk; Zillow Research ZHVI and ZORI, August 2026. Dollar figures are in 2024 dollars unless marked nominal. Full method on the methodology page.