Transforming Neglected Housing To Address San Francisco’s Housing Crisis

November 25th, 2019

Veritas Investments has led the way on improving San Francisco’s rent-controlled housing stock through series of interior, exterior, life safety and system upgrades. Buildings which commonly come into the Veritas portfolio often do so following years of disinvestment and significant deferred maintenance. One 26-year resident said things are now the best they’ve ever been!

From case study examples, Veritas offers a road map for preserving the city’s classic Victorian and Edwardian buildings with life-safety and general maintenance improvements, extending their useful life for years to come. These transformations benefit both long-term residents whose presence in the city helps it retain the character and charm and also attracts newcomers eager to start their own San Francisco story in one of Veritas’ many historic buildings.

The company’s building at 634 Powell Street in Lower Nob Hill offers a perfect example of a structure with great bones that had been neglected by its prior owners and has since experienced a metamorphosis under Veritas ownership. Following a series of seismic as well as substantial interior and exterior improvements, 634 Powell is now a beautiful, desirable, and safe place to live. Sub-standard plumbing and water systems, dangerous boiler equipment, and other unsafe conditions had previously placed the building on a pathway to obsolescence, but now both long-established residents and newer arrivals benefit from significant improvements to the building’s key systems and infrastructure. In short, this nearly century-old structure now has a renewed lease on life and is primed to continue to housing San Franciscans for decades to come.


At 634 Powell, Veritas brought an aging, neglected property back to life with seismic, building-code and comfort improvements, and all residents now enjoy a better, safer building.



634 Powell Unit 16 Before & After



634 Powell Boiler Room Before & After


Veritas has bought dozens of similar properties back from the brink of disrepair, including several properties in which units were so neglected that they were no longer habitable. At 845 Pine, for example, eight apartments were unable to be occupied when Veritas acquired the building, due to decades’ worth of deferred maintenance; today each of the eight are occupied.

At 1146 Taylor, Veritas acquired the building in a state of significant disrepair and retuned 14 units back to life that had been left vacant by prior owners. Throughout these improvement efforts, Veritas has taken great pains to minimize inconvenience sometimes associated with rehabilitation to its residents.

What do residents say about these and other buildings?

While the building, like many, has gone through maintenance and upgrades, our Resident Manager is always there to make sure everything is seamless and not disruptive in order to make our building a safe, clean, and great environment to call home.

698 Bush Street, Yelp Review on 12/14/2018

I wanted you to know that since [Veritas’ property manager] has taken over as the building manager, the building has never been running more smoothly. I say this in light of my 26-year tenancy.

2238 Hyde Street, Ryan on 12/22/2018

We had a few issues come up regarding noise. Going into the experience I assumed that because Veritas was a property management firm and not an individual landlord, that they would fob off my complaints. However, I was wrong. I’ve had a great experience and would recommend Veritas managed properties.

Phillip J on 10/4/2018


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634 Powell Today

634 Powell Unit 16 Before & After




634 Powell Boiler Room Before & After

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About Veritas

Veritas Investments, Inc. is an experienced real estate management company that specializes in operating mixed-use multifamily and retail properties in major West Coast markets.

The company offers institutional and individual investors a vertically-integrated platform and a clearly defined investment strategy that focuses on acquiring classic, often architecturally distinctive properties in the area's most iconic neighborhoods, and then enhancing their income and value through building and management improvements. The company holds a track record for moving quickly on opportunities, executing efficiently on strategy, and delivering superior financial performance to investors while giving back to the community.

More about Veritas Investments, Inc.


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