Permit GraphShortlistSan Francisco building permits since 2000

How long do deck permits take in San Francisco's Castro/Upper Market neighborhood?

In the Castro/Upper Market neighborhood of San Francisco, of the 34 deck permits filed from October 2025 through September 2026 that have been issued, half were issued within 13 days, up from 6 days a year earlier. Of the 34 permits filed from October 2023 through September 2024 that have reached final sign-off, half did so within 115 days of being issued, down from 175 days the year before.

From the city’s permit records, by the quarter each permit was filed. Data as of 8 October 2026. How to cite this · How this is calculated

How long until a permit is issued, and until final sign-off?

How long deck permits take in San Francisco's Castro/UpperMarket neighborhoodMedian days from filing to permit issuedMedian days from issue to final sign-offToo recent to judge02004006008002017201820192020202120222023202420252026DaysSource: San Francisco Department of Building Inspection permit data via DataSF, analysis by Permit Graph(permitgraph.org), CC BY 4.0.permitgraph.org/neighborhoods/castro-upper-market/deck · Data as of 8 October 2026By the quarter the permit was filed. A median counts only permits that finished the stage, so recent quarterslook faster than they will end up. Gaps: fewer than 5 permits.

This chart as an image (SVG), with its title, source and date, free to embed under CC BY 4.0.

At a glance

StagePermits filedPermits countedMedian daysCounted a year earlierMedian a year earlier
Filed to permit issuedOctober 2025 through September 202634 issued1341 issued6
Permit issued to final sign-offOctober 2023 through September 202434 finished11524 finished175

“Counted” is the permits the median was taken over: those filed in the window that have been issued, or that have reached final sign-off. The first stage covers the last four complete quarters, since most permits are issued within the year. The second covers the last four quarters that ended two or more years ago, so that most of their permits have had time to finish. Citywide, the median was 7 days to issue and 164 days from issue to final over the same quarters.

Every quarter since 2000

Quarter filedFiledIssuedMedian days to issueSlowest 10%Reached finalMedian days issue to finalSlowest 10%Never finaledSettled
2026-Q42000too recent
2026-Q39400too recent
2026-Q214859820too recent
2026-Q11513141286801230too recent
2025-Q41092814440too recent
2025-Q3141371749853180too recent
2025-Q210101115371712760too recent
2025-Q1771529020too recent
2024-Q4121152189952370too recent
2024-Q31414616110802690yes
2024-Q2211625292121404990yes
2024-Q18752995883570yes
2023-Q4981220272204450yes
2023-Q3109429461762341yes
2023-Q2106118033yes
2023-Q1771117071605450yes
2022-Q41816650282284435yes
2022-Q3129201877936352yes
2022-Q213130550121254020yes
2022-Q1991258081974350yes
2021-Q411910869561957403yes
2021-Q3161314419105228714yes
2021-Q217150451122225172yes
2021-Q19712229273426980yes
2020-Q4111020270184247191yes
2020-Q3771329863611,2261yes
2020-Q23321yes
2020-Q1981241862643932yes
2019-Q47422yes
2019-Q31715011613667332yes
2019-Q24431yes
2019-Q188079661302640yes
2018-Q41097725581543701yes
2018-Q31411171,26662764874yes
2018-Q21097432445yes
2018-Q11111838194258822yes
2017-Q4108311,0137826431yes
2017-Q39811996166161,1121yes
2017-Q21616362413618721yes
2017-Q19827065211,8221yes
2016-Q419164276121704242yes
2016-Q3883522473704761yes
2016-Q2131130235103128581yes
2016-Q1222040680141508543yes
2015-Q414130175121354081yes
2015-Q323200371183217722yes
2015-Q21211333692965333yes
2015-Q118173100162044862yes
2014-Q4151527721152187230yes
2014-Q31211627281995922yes
2014-Q2151475300132804420yes
2014-Q1191416231121175772yes
2013-Q4131222399873803yes
2013-Q3242202318484684yes
2013-Q217162428122127773yes
2013-Q114144223111384892yes
2012-Q4141315153121964641yes
2012-Q3212055211171766342yes
2012-Q21414754091817660yes
2012-Q12322124619934152yes
2011-Q4171604214953062yes
2011-Q324245220202124552yes
2011-Q215144257111543982yes
2011-Q1131242171003761yes
2010-Q41717712616828081yes
2010-Q323227368171616941yes
2010-Q2232302519471123yes
2010-Q1129018861314842yes
2009-Q417171303171595490yes
2009-Q32121143318365012yes
2009-Q220190190132093753yes
2009-Q11311021910473890yes
2008-Q41313027510973641yes
2008-Q317174354141385471yes
2008-Q2181572632121844550yes
2008-Q120185439813843614yes
2007-Q41616082131363292yes
2007-Q323230213171162395yes
2007-Q22623014018784202yes
2007-Q116150166121202950yes
2006-Q42121024514814213yes
2006-Q322200227161315221yes
2006-Q2151301657281351yes
2006-Q126250184191086314yes
2005-Q41210024751258441yes
2005-Q32222020612622784yes
2005-Q22524026017783082yes
2005-Q1121201939901242yes
2004-Q416160224101143362yes
2004-Q312120010371412yes
2004-Q223220166121133834yes
2004-Q1888029052143922yes
2003-Q4161601588771,9562yes
2003-Q319190252121103336yes
2003-Q211100851632,9700yes
2003-Q11514014610883,4862yes
2002-Q42927022422754214yes
2002-Q325240142161023756yes
2002-Q2191701138513911yes
2002-Q1232203515851750yes
2001-Q41515143591251,0381yes
2001-Q322210191101143162yes
2001-Q21918017891482821yes
2001-Q113135620572943551yes
2000-Q421210392111554481yes
2000-Q3262656240161655320yes
2000-Q22524010917964741yes
2000-Q11111239861883300yes

A blank median means fewer than 5 permits behind it: issued permits for the first stage, and for the second, finished permits whose final is dated after their issue (a permit never issued has no span). “Slowest 10%” is the 90th percentile: one permit in ten took at least this long. Download the table as CSV or JSON; both carry the source, license and data date.

What the numbers leave out

172 of the 1,649 deck permits filed since 2000 (10%) have no final sign-off 3 years after they were issued or, if never issued, filed. A median over finished permits understates the real wait: the permits that never finish are not in it. Inspection records are not yet included: “final sign-off” is the city’s own completion date on the permit.

Project types in San Francisco's Castro/Upper Market neighborhood

Shown apart, with their own page here: bathroom remodel (4,510 filed, 3,216 finished; contractors); kitchen remodel (3,859 filed, 2,761 finished; contractors); stairs (2,478 filed, 1,664 finished; contractors); deck (1,649 filed, 1,111 finished; contractors); roof deck (322 filed, 187 finished; contractors). Other types: 22,946 permits. All permits in San Francisco's Castro/Upper Market neighborhood

Nearby neighborhoods

Haight Ashbury, Twin Peaks, Noe Valley; all of San Francisco; every neighborhood compared.

How this is calculated

Approved means the city issued the permit: the permit’s issue date. The first stage counts days from the filing date to the issue date, over permits issued on or after they were filed. Final sign-off means the city’s own status for the permit is “complete”, with its completion date; this site does not yet read inspection records, so the inspection date is not a separate stage. The second stage counts days from the issue date to the completion date, over permits that have reached it.

Permits are grouped by the quarter they were filed. A quarter’s median counts only its permits that have finished the stage, so recent quarters look faster than they will end up: their slow permits have not finished yet. Quarters that ended two or more years ago are marked settled; the rest are shaded in the chart. The headline’s first stage uses the last four complete quarters; its second uses the last four settled quarters.

The median is the middle permit: half took less, half more. The slowest 10% is the 90th percentile. A median needs at least 5 permits behind it, or it is left out. A project type is shown apart within a neighborhood only when it has 30 or more finished permits there; the rest are “other types”.

Never finaled means no final sign-off three years after the permit was issued (or filed, if never issued), and not expired, cancelled, withdrawn, revoked, disapproved, denied or suspended (the site’s “expired or cancelled” outcome). About a quarter of permits citywide end this way; often the work was done and nobody called for the final inspection. These permits are in the counts and not in the medians.

A permit’s neighborhood is the Analysis Neighborhood the city writes on the permit record (the official set of 41). Permits with none are counted citywide only; the page says how many. “Nearby” neighborhoods are the three nearest by the center of their permits. The site reloads the city’s data every night; permits filed since 1 January 2000 are included. The placement of a permit, its dates and its status are the city’s; the grouping and the words are this site’s. How to read these records.