A tenant on the second floor tells you her daughter turns two next month. You nod, and then you look at the window she is standing next to. Old wood. Double-hung. Paint flaking at the sash where it rubs every time it opens.
About 80% of San Francisco housing has lead paint. Chipping paint where a child under 6 lives is a Health Code violation, and the fix is on the owner.
Right now, the City will pay for that fix. The program is called Fix Lead SF. It runs through the San Francisco Department of Public Health, and most of the owners who qualify have never heard of it. We found the flyer at a client building this week, checked every line against the City's own pages, and wrote this so you do not have to.
Who qualifies
Your building qualifies if ALL of these are true:
- It is residential.
- It was built before 1950.
- It is in zip code 94110, 94112 or 94124. The City says other zip codes will be added later.
- It has 9 or fewer units.
- A child under 6 lives there, visits often, or a family in the building is expecting a child.
Note: There is a second door in: any unit where a child has a high blood lead test result (9.5 micrograms per deciliter or higher) AND the Health Department has issued a Notice of Violation to fix lead hazards qualifies regardless of zip code or building age.
What it costs you
- Units with a child under 6: no cost or low cost.
- Common areas (halls, stairs, entry) in a building with at least one child under 6: no cost.
- Other units in the same building: the program pays 60% of the cost, up to the program maximum. You pay 40%.
- You choose how many units go into the program.
Note: The application asks you to confirm you understand the program has a maximum it will pay per unit. The City does not publish that number on the program page. Ask for it on the first phone call.
What the program actually does
- Sends a certified inspector to test paint and soil. The program pays for the inspection. You get the report.
- Removes the interior lead problems that are hardest to keep safe, especially painted double-hung windows.
- Repairs lead problems where removal is not practical.
- Moves tenants to a vacant unit, a friend's home, or a hotel the program pays for. Relocation is under 20 days.
- Puts a lead-certified professional on the job to watch progress and safety.
- Runs a final Clearance Inspection before anyone moves back in.
Note: Honest limit: the City says plainly that the program reduces lead risk. It does not remove every trace of lead from the building. It also will not fix anything unrelated to lead. It is not a renovation grant.
What to expect, step by step
- You apply. The program calls you back to answer questions.
- A certified inspector inspects your property. You sign the inspector's contract; the program pays.
- The program writes a Scope of Work from the inspection.
- Certified contractors walk your units and bid. The program picks the winning bid and shows it to you.
- You sign the contractor's contract; the program pays.
- Tenants are moved out temporarily. Work happens.
- Final Clearance Inspection. The program tells you when each unit passes.
- Tenants move back in.
Note: Your side of the deal: talk to your tenants first and get a signed acknowledgement from each one who takes part (the form is called Appendix B). Give access Monday to Friday, 7 AM to 6 PM. Answer the program on time.
How to apply
- Website: sf.gov/fix-lead-sf
- Phone: 415-252-3882
- Email: fixleadsf@sfdph.org
- Mail: Fix Lead SF, c/o Children's Environmental Health Promotion Program, San Francisco Department of Public Health, 49 South Van Ness Avenue, Suite 600, San Francisco, CA 94103
- Forms are available in English, Chinese, Filipino and Spanish.
Note: The City contracted Rebuilding Together San Francisco to run the program day to day, from March 1, 2022 through February 28, 2027, with three one-year options to extend (city record File 220144). That means the money is funded now. Do not wait on it.
If your building does not qualify
- Families with a child under 6 can request a lead inspection from the San Francisco Department of Public Health at 415-252-3800. If hazards are found, the owner must fix them, and the owner cannot retaliate against the tenant.
- You can hire your own inspector. Only a California Department of Public Health certified Inspector/Assessor can be paid to do a lead inspection in California. The state posts the list at cdph.ca.gov (search "Find a Lead Professional").
- Any repair, paint job or window work that disturbs paint in a building built before 1979 falls under Section 327 of the San Francisco Existing Building Code: notify tenants at least 3 business days ahead, post a Lead Work In Progress sign, contain the dust, and clean up visible chips before you finish.
- Federal law adds one more rule: the firm you pay to disturb paint in pre-1978 housing or child care space must be a certified Lead-Safe firm (search "find a lead-safe certified firm" at epa.gov). Federal fines run into the tens of thousands of dollars per violation, per day.
Where the Bureau fits, honestly
We do not remove lead paint. We are not a lead-certified contractor, and we will not pretend to be one. Fix Lead SF sends its own certified inspectors and contractors.
What we do is smaller and useful. Our people are inside your building every week. When we see paint chipping on a window sash, a door jamb or a sill, you hear about it the same day, with a photo. We keep sills and floors damp-wiped and vacuumed with sealed fine filters as part of routine service, which is the everyday dust control the Health Department recommends in older buildings. And we hand you this brief so you can make the call in ten minutes instead of ten weeks.
We take no fee from Fix Lead SF, from any inspector, or from any contractor named here. We have no financial relationship with any of them. If that ever changes, this page will say so.
Service connections
The people and programs in this brief, what each one does, and our relationship with each. We list them because they help you. Nothing more.
Fix Lead SF
Pays for lead inspection, removal and clearance in qualifying small pre-1950 buildings.
Contact: 415-252-3882 · fixleadsf@sfdph.org · sf.gov/fix-lead-sf
Our relationship: No relationship. Public program.
Rebuilding Together San Francisco
Runs the program day to day: intake calls, inspections, contractor bids, relocation, clearance.
Contact: Reach them through the Fix Lead SF phone and email above.
Our relationship: No relationship.
Childhood Lead Prevention Program
Free lead inspections for homes with a child under 6; education; enforcement of Health Code lead rules.
Contact: 415-252-3800
Our relationship: No relationship. Public agency.
Certified Lead Inspectors and Lead-Safe Firms
The only people legally allowed to be paid for lead inspections and paint-disturbing work in older buildings.
Contact: cdph.ca.gov → "Find a Lead Professional" · epa.gov → "Find a lead-safe certified firm"
Our relationship: We do not recommend a specific firm. Pick from the official lists and check the certificate expiration date.
What this looks like done
Picture the same hallway next spring. The old windows are gone. The clearance report is in your file. The mother on the second floor knows you did it before anyone asked. When an inspector, a parent or a buyer asks when this building was last checked for lead, you have the date and the paper.
If you own a small building in 94110, 94112 or 94124 and are not sure of the build year or whether the paint is a problem, ask us to look on our next visit. It takes ten minutes and costs nothing.
Sources
- Fix Lead SF for property owners — sf.gov (opens in a new window)Read in full September 20, 2026
- Submit your Fix Lead SF application — sf.gov (opens in a new window)September 20, 2026
- Fix Lead SF application form (cost-share and program maximum language) (opens in a new window)September 20, 2026
- Managing lead poisoning risks on a San Francisco residential property — sf.gov (80% figure) (opens in a new window)September 20, 2026
- Prevent lead poisoning in young children — sf.gov (415-252-3800 inspections) (opens in a new window)September 20, 2026
- Board of Supervisors File 220144 — Rebuilding Together San Francisco contract, $14.3 million, 2022 to 2027 (opens in a new window)September 20, 2026
- San Francisco Existing Building Code Section 327 — work practices for lead paint on pre-1979 buildings (opens in a new window)September 20, 2026
- California Department of Public Health — Find a Lead Professional (opens in a new window)September 20, 2026
- Federal Lead Renovation, Repair and Painting rule — contractors (opens in a new window)September 20, 2026
- Program flyer photographed at a client building, September 20, 2026Matches the sf.gov page line for line