menu






Real Estate Prices & Overview

Chinatown West median real estate price is $1,320,398, which is more expensive than 75.3% of the neighborhoods in California and 94.6% of the neighborhoods in the U.S.

The average rental price in Chinatown West is currently $1,523, based on NeighborhoodScout's exclusive analysis. Rents here are currently lower in price than 96.4% of California neighborhoods.

Chinatown West is a densely urban neighborhood (based on population density) located in San Francisco, California.

Chinatown West real estate is primarily made up of small (studio to two bedroom) to medium sized (three or four bedroom) apartment complexes/high-rise apartments and small apartment buildings. Most of the residential real estate is renter occupied. Many of the residences in the Chinatown West neighborhood are relatively historic, built no later than 1939, and in some cases, quite a bit earlier. A number of residences were also built between 1940 and 1969.

Chinatown West has a 14.5% vacancy rate, which is well above average compared to other U.S. neighborhoods (higher than 76.7% of American neighborhoods). Most vacant housing here is vacant year round. This could either signal that there is a weak demand for real estate in the neighborhood or that large amount of new housing has been built and not yet occupied. Either way, if you live here, you may find many of the homes or apartments are empty.

Notable & Unique Neighborhood Characteristics

The way a neighborhood looks and feels when you walk or drive around it, from its setting, its buildings, and its flavor, can make all the difference. This neighborhood has some really cool things about the way it looks and feels as revealed by NeighborhoodScout's exclusive research. This might include anything from the housing stock to the types of households living here to how people get around.

Real Estate

What you'll find when you visit or move to this neighborhood is one of the most crowded neighborhoods in all of America. With an incredible 77,676 people per square mile, it is more densely populated than 99.3% of America's neighborhoods. Even if you drive or take transit to your place of employment, many people enjoy being able to walk in their neighborhood. What many people don't realize is that most of America's premier vacation locations are also very walkable. The Chinatown West neighborhood is among the top 5% of American neighborhoods in terms of walkability.

In addition, renter-occupied real estate is dominant in the Chinatown West neighborhood. The percentage of rental real estate here, according to exclusive NeighborhoodScout analysis, is 92.0%, which is higher than 97.3% of the neighborhoods in America. If you were to buy and live in the property you bought here, you would be almost alone in doing so.

Furthermore, the real estate in the Chinatown West neighborhood really stands out in the way it looks for a unique reason: this neighborhood has a higher proportion of apartment complexes or high-rise apartments than nearly every neighborhood in the country. Most neighborhoods are a mixture of real estate and housing types, but here it is almost entirely dominated by big apartment buildings and complexes. In fact, 81.6% of the real estate here is classified as apartment complexes or high-rise apartments, which is more than is found in 96.9% of American neighborhoods.

Also of note, if you find historic homes and neighborhoods attractive, you love the details, the history, and the charm, then you are sure to be interested in this neighborhood. With 60.5% of the residential real estate in the Chinatown West neighborhood built no later than 1939, and some built considerably earlier, this neighborhood has a greater concentration of historic residences than 96.6% of all neighborhoods in America. In this regard, this neighborhood truly stands out as special.

Modes of Transportation

More people in Chinatown West choose to walk to work each day (34.1%) than almost any neighborhood in America. If you are attracted to the idea of being able to walk to work, this neighborhood could be a good choice.

Also, our research revealed that more commuters here take the bus to work (19.2% ride the bus) than 98.4% of all American neighborhoods. If you like the idea of leaving your car and home and hopping the bus to work, this might be a good neighborhood for you to consider.

Car Ownership

We Americans love our cars. Not only are they a necessity for most Americans due to the shape of our neighborhoods and the distances between where we live, work, shop, and go to school, but we also fancy them. As a result, most households in America have one, two, or three cars. But NeighborhoodScout's exclusive analysis shows that the Chinatown West neighborhood has a highly unusual pattern of car ownership. 45.7% of the households in this neighborhood don't own a car at all. This is more carless households than NeighborhoodScout found in 98.5% of U.S. neighborhoods.

People

One of the most interesting things about the Chinatown West neighborhood is that it has a greater concentration of residents who live alone than most all neighborhoods in America. With 52.8% of the households here made up of people living alone, NeighborhoodScout's research reveals that this is a larger proportion of people living alone than in 96.9% of the neighborhoods in America.

In addition, the Chinatown West neighborhood stands out for having an average per capita income lower than 95.9% of the neighborhoods in the United States. Also of note, 55.0% of the children in this area live in poverty; an extraordinarily high percentage compared to other neighborhoods in the nation. In a nation where approximately one in four children grows up in poverty, this neighborhood stands out for the depth of the problem manifested here.

Length of Commute

Regardless of the means by which residents commute, this neighborhood has a length of commute that is notable. Long commutes can be brutal. They take time, money, and energy, leaving less of you for yourself and your family. The residents of the Chinatown West neighborhood unfortunately have the distinction of having, on average, a longer commute than most any neighborhood in America. 9.7% of commuters here travel more than one hour just one-way to work. That is more than two hours per day. This percentage with two-hour + round-trip commutes is higher than NeighborhoodScout found in 95.1% of all neighborhoods in America.

Diversity

Did you know that the Chinatown West neighborhood has more Asian ancestry people living in it than nearly any neighborhood in America? It's true! In fact, 77.4% of this neighborhood's residents have Asian ancestry.

Chinatown West is also pretty special linguistically. Significantly, 63.7% of its residents five years old and above primarily speak Chinese at home. This is a higher percentage than 100.0% of all U.S. neighborhoods.

Migration / Stability

The freedom of moving to new places versus the comfort of home. How much and how often people move not only can create diverse and worldly neighborhoods, but simultaneously it can produce a loss of intimacy with one's surroundings and a lack of connectedness to one's neighbors. NeighborhoodScout's exclusive research has identified this neighborhood as unique with regard to the transience of its populace. What is interesting to note, is that the Chinatown West neighborhood has a greater percentage of residents born in another country (60.1%) than are found in 99.2% of all U.S. neighborhoods.

The Neighbors

How wealthy a neighborhood is, from very wealthy, to middle income, to low income is very formative with regard to the personality and character of a neighborhood. Equally important is the rate of people, particularly children, who live below the federal poverty line. In some wealthy gated communities, the areas immediately surrounding can have high rates of childhood poverty, which indicates other social issues. NeighborhoodScout's analysis reveals both aspects of income and poverty for this neighborhood.

The neighbors in the Chinatown West neighborhood in San Francisco are low income, making it among the lowest income neighborhoods in America. NeighborhoodScout's research shows that this neighborhood has an income lower than 95.9% of U.S. neighborhoods. With 55.0% of the children here below the federal poverty line, this neighborhood has a higher rate of childhood poverty than 95.6% of U.S. neighborhoods.

A neighborhood is far different if it is dominated by enlisted military personnel rather than people who earn their living by farming. It is also different if most of the neighbors are clerical support or managers. What is wonderful is the sheer diversity of neighborhoods, allowing you to find the type that fits your lifestyle and aspirations.

In the Chinatown West neighborhood, 37.9% of the working population is employed in executive, management, and professional occupations. The second most important occupational group in this neighborhood is clerical, assistant, and tech support occupations, with 31.8% of the residents employed. Other residents here are employed in sales and service jobs, from major sales accounts, to working in fast food restaurants (17.9%), and 12.4% in manufacturing and laborer occupations.

Languages

The most common language spoken in the Chinatown West neighborhood is Chinese, spoken by 63.7% of households. Some people also speak English (33.8%).

Ethnicity / Ancestry

Culture is the shared learned behavior of peoples. Undeniably, different ethnicities and ancestries have different cultural traditions, and as a result, neighborhoods with concentrations of residents of one or another ethnicities or ancestries will express those cultures. It is what makes the North End in Boston so fun to visit for the Italian restaurants, bakeries, culture, and charm, and similarly, why people enjoy visiting Chinatown in San Francisco.

In the Chinatown West neighborhood in San Francisco, CA, residents most commonly identify their ethnicity or ancestry as Asian (77.4%). There are also a number of people of Italian ancestry (3.1%), and residents who report Spanish roots (2.9%), and some of the residents are also of German ancestry (2.5%), along with some English ancestry residents (2.2%), among others. In addition, 60.1% of the residents of this neighborhood were born in another country.

Getting to Work

Even if your neighborhood is walkable, you may still have to drive to your place of work. Some neighborhoods are located where many can get to work in just a few minutes, while others are located such that most residents have a long and arduous commute. The greatest number of commuters in Chinatown West neighborhood spend between 15 and 30 minutes commuting one-way to work (42.9% of working residents), which is shorter than the time spent commuting to work for most Americans. However, there is also a significant group of residents (9.7%) who commute over an hour in each direction.

Here most residents (34.1%) hop out the door and walk to work to get to work. In addition, quite a number also ride the bus to get to work (19.2%) and 12.0% of residents also drive alone in a private automobile for their daily commute. This is a special neighborhood for the number of people who walk to work. Combining exercise, low cost, and reduced pollution, plus the chance to see your neighbors, walking to work is fairly uncommon in America but likely to increase as people try to reduce their dependence on automobiles, and this neighborhood offers that opportunity today.


Real Estate includes:
Average Home Values
Rental Market
Housing Market Details
Neighborhood Setting
Economics & Demographics include:
Lifestyle & Special Character
Household Types
Commute To Work
Migration & Mobility
Race & Ethnic Diversity
Employment Industries & Occupations
Income & Unemployment Rate
Higher Education Attainment
Crime includes:
Neighborhood Crime Index
Crimes Per Square Mile
Property Crime Comparison
Violent Crime Comparison
Schools include:
School Ratings
Schools In District
Public School Test Scores
School District Enrollment
Educational Expenditures

comparable neighborhoods nearby