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San Francisco directory · Ranked by permits issued

Apartment and multifamily architects in San Francisco

659 architects and designers have 2 or more apartment and multifamily 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
659
Permits of this type filed since 2018
59,927
Citywide median with plan review
6.2 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-105
Drawing
Apartment and multifamily architects, San Francisco
Source
SF DBI building permits since 2018
Date
Oct 2026
Scale
2+ issued to be listed

659 listed, most apartment and multifamily permits issued first

  1. No. 1
    Apartments 81% ADUs 18%

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

    234 issued

    Halyard Construction Inc.

    Architect · License C34024 · San Francisco

    Apartments issued
    234 of 272
    Share of their work
    81%
    Median to issue
    6.2 mo
    This firm
    6.2 mo
    Citywide
    6.2 mo

    256 permits of all types issued since 2018. Mostly apartments and multifamily 81% · ADUs 18% · home remodels 1%. Last filed Jun 2026.

    Most active in

    • Pacific Heights
    • Marina
    • Hayes Valley
    • Haight Ashbury
    2018 Permits filed per year 2026

    Open profile

  2. No. 2
    Apartments 96%

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

    142 issued

    Hkit Architects

    Architect · License C24760 · Oakland

    Apartments issued
    142 of 145
    Share of their work
    96%
    Median to issue
    9.4 mo
    This firm
    9.4 mo
    Citywide
    6.2 mo

    148 permits of all types issued since 2018. Mostly apartments and multifamily 96% · hotels, clinics, schools and other commercial 4%. Last filed Oct 2026.

    Most active in

    • Japantown
    • Marina
    • Pacific Heights
    • Western Addition
    2018 Permits filed per year 2026

    Open profile

  3. No. 3
    Apartments 36% Home remodels 29% Hotels, schools,clinics 12% ADUs 5% Shops 5% Other 7%

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

    124 issued

    Shatara Architecture

    Architect · License C24700 · San Francisco

    Apartments issued
    124 of 183
    Share of their work
    36%
    Median to issue
    17.7 mo
    This firm
    17.7 mo
    Citywide
    6.2 mo

    381 permits of all types issued since 2018. Mostly apartments and multifamily 36% · home remodels 29% · hotels, clinics, schools and other commercial 12%. Last filed Oct 2026.

    Most active in

    • Mission
    • Bayview Hunters Point
    • Noe Valley
    • Potrero Hill
    2018 Permits filed per year 2026

    Open profile

  1. 4
    Xie Associates Architect · C32963 · Home remodels 60% · Apartments and multifamily 18% Sunset/Parkside, Outer Richmond, West of Twin Peaks, Excelsior
    115 issued of 131
    9.0 mo median to issue
  2. 5
    Thousand Architects Architect · C30755 · Apartments and multifamily 48% · ADUs 30% Marina, Pacific Heights, Mission, Hayes Valley
    97 issued of 108
    8.9 mo median to issue
  3. 6
    Basis Architecture Architect · C21406 · Apartments and multifamily 74% · Home remodels 25% Bayview Hunters Point, Western Addition, Castro/Upper Market
    96 issued of 110
    — too few of this type to time
  4. 7
    Syncopated Architecture Architect · C30744 · Apartments and multifamily 49% · ADUs 26% Mission, Nob Hill, Tenderloin, Inner Sunset
    75 issued of 120
    8.6 mo median to issue
  5. 8
    Openscope Studio Architect · C33268 · Apartments and multifamily 44% · ADUs 32% Mission, Pacific Heights, Marina, Noe Valley
    74 issued of 83
    5.4 mo median to issue
  6. 9
    Hood Thomas Architects Architect · C19445 · Apartments and multifamily 39% · Home remodels 33% Mission, Castro/Upper Market, Pacific Heights, Financial District/South Beach
    72 issued of 82
    13.0 mo median to issue
  7. 10
    Gelfand Partners Architects Architect · C17265 · Apartments and multifamily 69% · Offices 16% Bernal Heights, Chinatown, Mission, Russian Hill
    71 issued of 75
    4.5 mo median to issue
  8. 11
    Gensler Architect · C38081 · Offices 78% · Apartments and multifamily 11% Financial District/South Beach, Mission Bay, South of Market, Chinatown
    70 issued of 73
    5.1 mo median to issue
  9. 12
    Architects Sf Architect · C34078 · Home remodels 48% · Apartments and multifamily 25% Bernal Heights, Mission, Marina, Pacific Heights
    68 issued of 86
    11.4 mo median to issue
  10. 13
    Arcus Architecture & Planning Architect · C14679 · Apartments and multifamily 37% · Home remodels 24% Chinatown, Sunset/Parkside, Outer Richmond, West of Twin Peaks
    62 issued of 85
    4.8 mo median to issue
  11. 14
    Ssdp Architect · C25093 · Apartments and multifamily 89% · Offices 11% Mission, Bayview Hunters Point, Chinatown, Tenderloin
    62 issued of 63
    5.2 mo median to issue
  12. 15
    Levy Design Partners Architect · C14940 · Apartments and multifamily 74% · New homes 13% Financial District/South Beach, Hayes Valley, Inner Sunset, Western Addition
    60 issued of 65
    9.8 mo median to issue
  13. 16
    Stanton Architecture Architect · C11562 · Apartments and multifamily 65% · Offices 20% Tenderloin, Nob Hill, Financial District/South Beach, South of Market
    55 issued of 66
    11.2 mo median to issue
  14. 17
    Topetcher Architectural Architect · C21678 · Home remodels 46% · Apartments and multifamily 27% Haight Ashbury, Mission, Marina, Outer Richmond
    54 issued of 64
    12.6 mo median to issue
  15. 18
    Revel Architecture & Design Architect · C36455 · Offices 91% · Apartments and multifamily 7% Financial District/South Beach, Mission Bay, South of Market, Chinatown
    50 issued of 52
    — too few of this type to time
  16. 19
    Kotas/Pantaleoni Architects Architect · C14072 · Home remodels 32% · Apartments and multifamily 31% West of Twin Peaks, Sunset/Parkside, Marina, Twin Peaks
    44 issued of 48
    13.2 mo median to issue
  17. 20
    Axis Gfa Architecture & Design Architect · C35881 · Apartments and multifamily 76% · Hotels, clinics, schools and other commercial 17% Financial District/South Beach, Chinatown, Tenderloin, Nob Hill
    44 issued of 48
    — too few of this type to time
  18. 21
    David Baker Architects Architect · C30025 · Apartments and multifamily 89% · Offices 5% Tenderloin, Mission, Nob Hill, South of Market
    44 issued of 49
    9.3 mo median to issue
  19. 22
    Ya Studio Architect · C29776 · Apartments and multifamily 54% · Home remodels 19% Financial District/South Beach, Noe Valley, Mission, Mission Bay
    41 issued of 51
    8.9 mo median to issue
  20. 23
    Nathan Simpson Architect Architect · C37662 · Apartments and multifamily 81% · Retail and shops 7% Russian Hill, Mission, Tenderloin, Outer Richmond
    41 issued of 46
    18.5 mo median to issue
  21. 24
    Jason M.J.Chan Architect Architect · C25279 · Home remodels 66% · Apartments and multifamily 16% Sunset/Parkside, West of Twin Peaks, Outer Richmond, Inner Richmond
    40 issued of 45
    3.2 mo median to issue
  22. 25
    Jorge Carbonell Architecture Architect · C30680 · Home remodels 44% · Apartments and multifamily 34% Noe Valley, Marina, Presidio Heights, Inner Sunset
    40 issued of 49
    5.1 mo median to issue

Ranked by apartment and multifamily 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 apartment and multifamily 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 6.2 months for apartment and multifamily 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 apartment and multifamily permits in San Francisco?

On city permit records since 2018, Halyard Construction Inc. is named on the most issued apartment and multifamily permits among architects and designers (234 issued of 272 filed).

How long does a apartment and multifamily permit take in San Francisco?

Of 59,927 apartment and multifamily permits filed since 2018, 56,294 were over-the-counter permits without full plan review. For those that went through plan review, the median took 6.2 months from filing to issue, and the middle half took 2.7 to 12.3 months.

How is this list ranked?

By the number of apartment and multifamily 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.