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Pacific Heights sits on Planning's list of 37 named neighborhoods as Pacific Heights, not as Presidio Heights, not as the Marina, and not as the Western Addition (SF Planning). A Pacific Heights property tax appeal still uses San Francisco's citywide calendar and the $120 Assessment Appeals Board fee. What changes is the comparable: view versus no view, house versus condo, and the named neighborhood on the other side of a three-block walk.
We will not claim this neighborhood "has the most to gain." That would require a sourced median and a sourced gap. Competing public pages do not even agree on a citywide median, so we omit the number. AppealKit is a flat-fee tool, not a law firm.
What is different about comps here?
Views and floor level. Large houses and view-oriented condos make "similar" harder than a bedroom count. Publication 30 lists view and lot attributes as physical-similarity factors, and it tells you to adjust for them rather than average them away (Publication 30). A bay-facing upper-floor condo is not a comparable for a lower-floor unit on the same street without a view adjustment. A house with a wide lot is not a comparable for a tight mid-block house without a lot adjustment.
Named neighbors that are not this market. Planning separately lists Presidio Heights, Marina, Western Addition, Japantown, and Presidio. A Marina sale is a different fabric (and often a different building type). A Presidio Heights sale is a different name on the official notification map. Crossing those names because the closing price is convenient is the usual way a high-value grid looks precise and still fails similarity.
Property type on Fillmore and nearby commercial edges. Mixed-use and multi-unit sales are not single-family comps. Condos start in the same building, then very similar buildings, adjusted for parking, outdoor space, and floor. Houses stay with houses.
Time still rules. For a regular decline-in-value case the valuation date is January 1. Sales more than 90 days after that date are inadmissible (BOE FAQs). Informal review cuts off at March 31 (apply for a decline-in-value). The method page: finding comparable sales.
Who should bother checking?
Owners whose enrolled value sits near current market — typically a recent purchase or a restored Proposition 8 number — not owners whose Proposition 13 base year is decades old and already far below what the house would sell for. High nominal values make a gap expensive at the Treasurer's 1.18268325% FY 2025-26 secured rate, but a gap still has to be proved with January 1 sales. Hypothetical "if you were $400,000 over" arithmetic is not evidence.
Citywide process — informal review, BOE-305-AH, September 15, 2026, hearing officer versus panel — is on the hub and the how-to. Pacific Heights does not get a different Board.
The free check will tell you whether adjusted comps sit below the roll. If they do not, skip the $120.
FAQ
Is Pacific Heights the same as Presidio Heights for comps?
No. Planning lists them as separate named neighborhoods. Start in Pacific Heights (sfplanning.org).
Do view adjustments actually matter at the hearing?
Yes. View is on the state's own similarity list, and unadjusted view sales are a physical-similarity miss (Publication 30).
Does a higher assessed value mean a better appeal?
Only if January 1 market is below that number. A high enrolled value that is still below market is not a Proposition 8 case.
Same deadlines as the rest of the city?
Yes. Regular FY 2026/2027 window July 2–September 15, 2026 (sf.gov AAB).
Related
- San Francisco property tax appeal hub
- How to appeal in San Francisco
- Finding comparable sales
- AAB hearing
- How to read the bill
- Noe Valley · Richmond
- Free check
Sources
- SF Planning — Pacific Heights listed separately from Presidio Heights, Marina, Western Addition. -> https://sfplanning.org/resource/neighborhood-group-organizations
- BOE Publication 30 — view, lot attributes, adjustments. -> https://www.boe.ca.gov/proptaxes/pdf/pub30.pdf
- BOE assessment appeals FAQs — 90-day comps rule. -> https://www.boe.ca.gov/proptaxes/faqs/assessappeals.htm
- Apply for a decline-in-value. -> https://www.sf.gov/apply-decline-value
- Treasurer — FY 2025-26 secured rate 1.18268325%. -> https://sftreasurer.org/property/secured-property-taxes
- Assessment Appeals Board. -> https://www.sf.gov/departments--assessment-appeals-board
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