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ADU section · San Francisco directory

ADU architects in San Francisco

149 architects and designers have 2 or more ADU permits issued in San Francisco since 2018. We rank them by how many the city issued with their name on the record, and show how long their plan-review permits took.

Updated October 20, 2026 · Nobody pays to be listed or ranked

Architects ranked
149
Permits of this type filed since 2018
3,439
Citywide median with plan review
13.5 mo

Where is the project?

Pick a neighborhood to see who works there most. Bars count the architects for whom it is a top neighborhood.

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Sheet
A-104
Drawing
ADU architects, San Francisco
Source
SF DBI building permits since 2018
Date
Oct 2026
Scale
2+ issued to be listed

149 listed, most ADU permits issued first

  1. No. 1
    Home remodels 60% Apartments 18% ADUs 10% Additions 4% Other 8%

    Their permits by type, as a plan. Hatched: adus.

    51 issued

    Xie Associates

    Architect · License C32963 · San Francisco

    ADUs issued
    51 of 70
    Share of their work
    10%
    Median to issue
    13.8 mo
    This firm
    13.8 mo
    Citywide
    13.5 mo

    628 permits of all types issued since 2018. Mostly home remodels 60% · apartments and multifamily 18% · ADUs 10%. Last filed Oct 2026.

    Most active in

    • Sunset/Parkside
    • Outer Richmond
    • West of Twin Peaks
    • Excelsior
    2018 Permits filed per year 2026

    Open profile

  2. No. 2
    Apartments 49% ADUs 26% Home remodels 18% Other 8%

    Their permits by type, as a plan. Hatched: adus.

    49 issued

    Syncopated Architecture

    Architect · License C30744 · San Francisco

    ADUs issued
    49 of 63
    Share of their work
    26%
    Median to issue
    14.3 mo
    This firm
    14.3 mo
    Citywide
    13.5 mo

    168 permits of all types issued since 2018. Mostly apartments and multifamily 49% · ADUs 26% · home remodels 18%. Last filed Oct 2026.

    Most active in

    • Mission
    • Nob Hill
    • Tenderloin
    • Inner Sunset
    2018 Permits filed per year 2026

    Open profile

  3. No. 3
    Apartments 44% ADUs 32% Home remodels 16% Other 8%

    Their permits by type, as a plan. Hatched: adus.

    42 issued

    Openscope Studio

    Architect · License C33268 · San Francisco

    ADUs issued
    42 of 60
    Share of their work
    32%
    Median to issue
    12.7 mo
    This firm
    12.7 mo
    Citywide
    13.5 mo

    151 permits of all types issued since 2018. Mostly apartments and multifamily 44% · ADUs 32% · home remodels 16%. Last filed Sep 2026.

    Most active in

    • Mission
    • Pacific Heights
    • Marina
    • Noe Valley
    2018 Permits filed per year 2026

    Open profile

  1. 4
    Thousand Architects Architect · C30755 · Apartments and multifamily 48% · ADUs 30% Marina, Pacific Heights, Mission, Hayes Valley
    39 issued of 67
    10.4 mo median to issue
  2. 5
    Cm Architects Architect · C35515 · ADUs 42% · Apartments and multifamily 31% Mission, Outer Richmond, Nob Hill, Hayes Valley
    23 issued of 45
    13.6 mo median to issue
  3. 6
    Hood Thomas Architects Architect · C19445 · Apartments and multifamily 39% · Home remodels 33% Mission, Castro/Upper Market, Pacific Heights, Financial District/South Beach
    22 issued of 28
    18.6 mo median to issue
  4. 7
    Shatara Architecture Architect · C24700 · Apartments and multifamily 36% · Home remodels 29% Mission, Bayview Hunters Point, Noe Valley, Potrero Hill
    19 issued of 28
    12.8 mo median to issue
  5. 8
    Hing Wah Construction Designer · 662696 · Home remodels 78% · Apartments and multifamily 9% Sunset/Parkside, West of Twin Peaks, Outer Richmond, Excelsior
    16 issued of 20
    27.3 mo median to issue
  6. 9
    Halyard Construction Inc. Architect · C34024 · Apartments and multifamily 81% · ADUs 18% Pacific Heights, Marina, Hayes Valley, Haight Ashbury
    16 issued of 59
    19.6 mo median to issue
  7. 10
    Aaron Lim Design Architect · C37034 · Home remodels 64% · ADUs 15% Bayview Hunters Point, Sunset/Parkside, Outer Richmond, West of Twin Peaks
    16 issued of 21
    12.8 mo median to issue
  8. 11
    Jason M.J.Chan Architect Architect · C25279 · Home remodels 66% · Apartments and multifamily 16% Sunset/Parkside, West of Twin Peaks, Outer Richmond, Inner Richmond
    15 issued of 22
    16.7 mo median to issue
  9. 12
    Topetcher Architectural Architect · C21678 · Home remodels 46% · Apartments and multifamily 27% Haight Ashbury, Mission, Marina, Outer Richmond
    15 issued of 22
    18.2 mo median to issue
  10. 13
    Knock Arch & Design Architect · C31156 · Home remodels 62% · ADUs 12% Castro/Upper Market, Noe Valley, Potrero Hill, Mission
    15 issued of 22
    11.5 mo median to issue
  11. 14
    Michael Harris Architecture Architect · C15349 · Apartments and multifamily 35% · ADUs 25% Castro/Upper Market, Mission, Potrero Hill, Pacific Heights
    14 issued of 16
    8.4 mo median to issue
  12. 15
    Lofrano Arch/Sculpture Design Architect · C7292 · Apartments and multifamily 59% · ADUs 26% Hayes Valley, Russian Hill, Marina, Pacific Heights
    12 issued of 16
    19.7 mo median to issue
  13. 16
    Kotas/Pantaleoni Architects Architect · C14072 · Home remodels 32% · Apartments and multifamily 31% West of Twin Peaks, Sunset/Parkside, Marina, Twin Peaks
    11 issued of 17
    14.9 mo median to issue
  14. 17
    Wayne Myer Works Arch Architect · C31705 · Home remodels 51% · ADUs 22% Mission, West of Twin Peaks, Inner Richmond, Inner Sunset
    11 issued of 11
    14.3 mo median to issue
  15. 18
    Architects Sf Architect · C34078 · Home remodels 48% · Apartments and multifamily 25% Bernal Heights, Mission, Marina, Pacific Heights
    10 issued of 28
    21.9 mo median to issue
  16. 19
    Schaub | Li | Architects Architect · C32289 · Home remodels 38% · Apartments and multifamily 26% West of Twin Peaks, Glen Park, Sunset/Parkside, Mission
    10 issued of 18
    7.5 mo median to issue
  17. 20
    Hing Wah Design Designer · Home remodels 86% · Apartments and multifamily 6% Sunset/Parkside, West of Twin Peaks, Outer Richmond, Excelsior
    9 issued of 13
    12.3 mo median to issue
  18. 21
    Aem Architect · C23812 · Home remodels 49% · Apartments and multifamily 21% Sunset/Parkside, Outer Richmond, Mission, Inner Richmond
    9 issued of 16
    29.0 mo median to issue
  19. 22
    Dnm Architect Architect · C27909 · Home remodels 37% · Apartments and multifamily 22% Mission, Haight Ashbury, Sunset/Parkside, Noe Valley
    8 issued of 13
    21.3 mo median to issue
  20. 23
    Mml Architect Architect · C32972 · Home remodels 33% · Apartments and multifamily 26% Sunset/Parkside, Mission, Nob Hill, Bernal Heights
    8 issued of 11
    4.2 mo median to issue
  21. 24
    Huang Iboshi Architecture Architect · C27547 · Home remodels 47% · Apartments and multifamily 27% Pacific Heights, Marina, West of Twin Peaks, Inner Richmond
    8 issued of 10
    8.4 mo median to issue
  22. 25
    Wing Lee Architects Architect · C28929 · Home remodels 41% · ADUs 21% Sunset/Parkside, West of Twin Peaks, Inner Sunset, Portola
    8 issued of 15
    16.1 mo median to issue

Ranked by ADU building permits issued in San Francisco since 2018 with the firm named on the permit record; firms need 2 or more to be listed. The line under each name shows the firm's two largest project types as a share of its permits. Median time covers the firm's ADU plan-review permits only and needs 3 or more issued with dates; the blue dimension line under it is drawn to scale, and the small dark mark on it is the citywide median of 13.5 months for ADU permits. Neighborhoods are where it filed the most permits of any type. A listing is not an endorsement, and nobody pays to be ranked. Some firms appear twice when the city recorded them under two names.

Source and notes

Source: San Francisco Department of Building Inspection building permits and permit contacts on DataSF. We include new-construction, plan-review and over-the-counter alteration permits filed since 2018, sorted into project types from the building's use and the permit description. Owner-builders and other private individuals are left out, and we never publish project addresses. Is your firm listed wrong? Send a correction.

Common questions

Which architects have the most ADU permits in San Francisco?

On city permit records since 2018, Xie Associates is named on the most issued ADU permits among architects and designers (51 issued of 70 filed).

How long does a ADU permit take in San Francisco?

Of 3,439 ADU permits filed since 2018, 972 were over-the-counter permits without full plan review. For those that went through plan review, the median took 13.5 months from filing to issue, and the middle half took 7.9 to 22.0 months.

How is this list ranked?

By the number of ADU building permits issued in San Francisco since 2018 where the firm or person is named on the permit record in the city's public contacts data. We sort permits into project types from the building's use and the permit description. Nobody pays to be listed or ranked. Sponsored placements, when they exist, are labeled and shown apart from the ranking.