How SF Artists Can Qualify for 93 Affordable Apartments at 1687 Market Street

San Francisco artists who want a shot at one of the affordable apartments at Artists Hub on Market, the 15-story building under construction at 1687 Market Street, will need an Artist Housing Certification number from the San Francisco Arts Commission first. The Arts Commission’s certification page says applications open in early 2027, and an interest form is open now for anyone who wants the application link and dates by email.

The certification gives artists priority in the city housing lottery for 93 affordable, artist-priority apartments, according to the city’s affordable artist housing page. Certification is free and is not a housing application, and it does not guarantee an apartment.

Who counts as an artist

Applicants qualify through any one of three pathways set by city law, per the Arts Commission:

• Income: earned more than $10,000 a year from your art in at least three of the past five years.
• Grants: received a grant to produce art in the past three years from a foundation, nonprofit or government agency.
• Portfolio review: if neither applies, submit work samples for the Arts Commission to judge your “engagement in and professional commitment to artistic practice.”

The city says the online application takes 10 to 20 minutes, review takes four to six weeks, and an approved certification number is good for five years. Applicants who are turned down have 10 days to appeal. The city asks applicants not to submit Social Security numbers, bank details or tax forms. Board of Supervisors President Rafael Mandelman, who sponsored the legislation, told the San Francisco Standard that the portfolio pathway “creates flexibility if it turns out that on the first two we’ve missed something.”

Rents and income limits

Units are restricted to households at 30, 60 and 80 percent of Area Median Income. The city’s estimates, based on 2025 levels and subject to change:

• Studio (limits for a 2-person household): $962 a month at 30% AMI with income up to $46,440; $1,547 at 60% AMI with income up to $92,880.
• One bedroom (3-person household): $1,018 at 30% AMI, income up to $52,230; $2,106 at 60%, up to $104,460; $2,830 at 80%, up to $139,280.
• Two bedrooms (5-person household): $1,218 at 30% AMI, income up to $62,670; $2,524 at 60%, up to $125,340; $3,394 at 80%, up to $167,120.

There is a minimum income requirement as well as a maximum. The building will have no on-site car parking.

The timeline

• Now: interest form open on the Arts Commission page; renters can also create an account on DAHLIA, the city’s affordable housing portal.
• Early 2027: certification applications open.
• Mid 2027: certification window closes and applicants are notified.
• Mid to late 2027: the building’s housing application opens and closes on DAHLIA, using the certification number.
• Late 2027: the city holds the lottery.
• Early 2028: lease-up and move-ins.

In the lottery, certified artists with a city housing preference go first, then certified artists without one, then general applicants with and without preferences, the city says. City preferences include the Certificate of Preference, Displaced Tenant Housing Preference, Neighborhood Resident Housing Preference and Live or Work in San Francisco Preference, and veterans get priority within each group. The Standard reports that 40 percent of units are set aside for neighborhood residents and 20 percent for displaced tenants.

What is being built

Mercy Housing California is developing the residences, and the nonprofit Artists Hub on Market will run the arts spaces on the lower floors: rehearsal and practice rooms, a black box theater, arts services and a cafe, per the city. The Standard puts the theater at 99 seats. Mayor Daniel Lurie broke ground on the $140 million project on July 28, 2026, and the mayor’s announcement credits a $100 million private gift. The site at Market and Gough streets sits where Hayes Valley, Civic Center, the Mission and the Castro meet, and for nearly a century it was the McRoskey Mattress Co. showroom, the Standard reports.

For more arts news from the city, see our post on the free Beaver Bauer costume retrospective at the Main Library.

Image: rendering of Artists Hub on Market, via Artists Hub on Market (ahomsf.org).