If you’re walking through Alamo Square Park around 4 p.m., odds are you’ll see Bill Bonds. The 88-year-old retired faculty member of San Francisco State walks his Havanese dog, Nova, through the idyllic SF park every day. He’s one of the roughly 4,000 people who live in the small four-by-four-block neighborhood, which has suddenly become one of the most desirable areas in the city, with rents rising 42% from May 2025 to May 2026. Thankfully, that’s not something Bonds has to worry about, as he’s owned his home since 1984 and just paid off the mortgage.

You might also see Owen Spain in the park, walking his dachshund, Pippin. A 28-year-old who works in finance, Spain moved into the neighborhood in January, arriving from Baltimore with his girlfriend. They toured at least 15 apartments, putting in offers on three, before landing in a one-bedroom for what now seems like something of a steal — $3,800.

And two years ago, you would’ve seen me and my shih tzu, Peanut, bounding through the grass while tourists snapped photos in front of the Painted Ladies.

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In my seven years living in San Francisco, I bounced between several different neighborhoods, from the Mission to Pacific Heights, and then landed in Alamo Square in 2023. I no longer live there and, sadly, I likely couldn’t afford it due to that astronomical surge in rent — there’s been a 62% jump in median rent there since 2023.

A residential street in the Alamo Square neighborhood of San Francisco.

While that growth in rent isn’t limited to just this one neighborhood, of course, Alamo Square saw the largest increase of any SF area in the May-to-May period (it cooled slightly in June, posting a mere 35% increase year over year to an average of $4,200 for a one-bedroom). Shifts in small neighborhoods like Alamo Square can be more volatile, but trends have held steady across the city. Almost everyone spoken with for this article posited the artificial intelligence boom as a catalyst, but there are also more structural issues.  

“There are large housing developments that should have been built years ago but have been stalled,” said District 5 Supervisor Bilal Mahmood, citing several projects alongside neighboring Divisadero Street. “And it is the lack of the development and progress on those respective housing projects that has resulted in a compounding housing crisis in that neighborhood that has been blocking people’s ability to live there.”

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What about the area has sparked such a rental bidding war? The answer, from my experience, is that Alamo Square is the best San Francisco neighborhood to live in, full stop.

Alamo Square Park, from 1856 to today

Walk just a few steps from the legions of tourists snapping photos at the Painted Ladies, and you’ll stumble onto the Lady Falcon coffee truck. It began operating in 2017 and now serves throngs of thirsty neighborhood residents and tourists.

“During the pandemic, it felt sort of rediscovered by the locals and really enjoyed,” said Buffy Maguire, owner of Lady Falcon. “It felt like it became everyone’s collective backyard and a real hangout, which is something that you would see in a place like Dolores Park.”

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Visitors relax in Alamo Square.

Tourists snap a selfie in front of the Painted Lady at 712 Steiner St., San Francisco, on Dec. 25, 2022.

Victorians are spotted through trees at Alamo Square.

It wasn’t always the most desirable neighborhood. In fact, people used to be afraid of it.

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The 1970s and early ’80s were a tumultuous period for the park, with........

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