Despite a pronounced slowdown in the relative number of condos and single-family homes newly listed for sale over the past couple of quarters, driven by a jump in the cost of debt and sellers being unable or unwilling to accept an ongoing drop in values in order to move, the net number of single-family homes and condos on the market in San Francisco continues to inch up, driven by an even greater slowdown in the pace of sales.

While listed inventory is currently 14 percent lower than at the same time last year, driven by a drop in listings for condos versus single-family homes, it’s still 30 higher than average over the past decade, 60 percent higher than prior to the pandemic and over twice as high as in 2015, with a third of active listings having been reduced at least once and the average asking price per square foot of the homes which are in contract poised to drop back under $900 per square foot.

As we outlined last month: It’s Not Exactly Cheap, but It Is [Getting] Cheaper in San Francisco, none of which should catch any plugged-in readers, other than the most obstinate, by surprise.

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Engineers are working to stabilize a luxury San Francisco apartment building that is tilting about three inches per year, the AP reports.

Why it matters: At the current rate, the 58-story, 419-unit Millennium Tower is on track to reach a 40-inch tilt in a few years, which could render elevators and plumbing unusable, according to AP.

• Residents have sued the developer and designers regarding the troubled building.
• The building, located on Mission Street in the city’s financial district, opened to residents in 2009, according to NBC.

Details: The tower’s foundation sits on sand, soil and clay, which is compressing rapidly. Engineers on the project have proposed slashing the number of support piles and anchoring them into bedrock 250 feet below the structure to stabilize it.

• The tower had already sunk 16 inches into the ground in 2016, with a 6-inch lean at the top of the building, per AP. It is now tilting 26 inches north and west, per NBC.
• A review of the building’s structural issues found a one- to four-day delay between excavating soil around the building and replacing it with grout could have worsened the leaning, an NBC investigation found.
• The delay went against protocol and “could very well explain the comparatively rapid settlement and tilting that occurred during pile installation in August,” according to NBC.

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Engineers are working to stabilize a luxury San Francisco apartment building that is tilting about three inches per year, the AP reports.

Why it matters: At the current rate, the 58-story, 419-unit Millennium Tower is on track to reach a 40-inch tilt in a few years, which could render elevators and plumbing unusable, according to AP.

• Residents have sued the developer and designers regarding the troubled building.
• The building, located on Mission Street in the city’s financial district, opened to residents in 2009, according to NBC.

Details: The tower’s foundation sits on sand, soil and clay, which is compressing rapidly. Engineers on the project have proposed slashing the number of support piles and anchoring them into bedrock 250 feet below the structure to stabilize it.

• The tower had already sunk 16 inches into the ground in 2016, with a 6-inch lean at the top of the building, per AP. It is now tilting 26 inches north and west, per NBC.
• A review of the building’s structural issues found a one- to four-day delay between excavating soil around the building and replacing it with grout could have worsened the leaning, an NBC investigation found.
• The delay went against protocol and “could very well explain the comparatively rapid settlement and tilting that occurred during pile installation in August,” according to NBC.

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The engineer trying to stabilize the Millennium Tower, a luxury residential skyscraper in San Francisco that is sinking into the ground and now leaning over two feet off of center, said the building is now tilting three inches per year.

Structural engineer Ronald O. Hamburger made the comments Thursday at a city hearing in which he pitched an updated fix for the building’s foundation, NBC Bay Area reported.

The 58-story, 645-foot tall tower — opened to residents in 2009 — is now tilting 26 inches north and west at Fremont and Mission Streets in the heart of San Francisco’s financial district, according to NBC Bay Area.

Residents were informed that the building is settling unevenly and more than anticipated in 2016. The tower sits beside the Salesforce Transit Center, a bus terminal and potential future rail terminus for California’s high speed rail network currently under construction.

But efforts to stabilize the sinking and leaning skyscraper seemed to worsen matters. Engineers halted construction on the fix in summer 2021 so they could “determine why increased foundation movement was occurring and how this could be mitigated.”

To relaunch the stabilization, Hamburger on Thursday proposed slashing the number of support piles beneath the tower from 52 to 18 to “minimize additional building settlement.”

A letter to the Millennium Tower’s general manager last month said the new, quicker fix was needed after engineers identified two potential causes for apparent worsening of the building’s settlement: “vibration of the soils associated with pile installation activity, and unintentional removal of excessive soil as the piles were installed.”

Hamburger said the 18 steel piles will be anchored into bedrock 250 feet under the tower, cutting through rapidly compressing clay and sand soil that the building’s foundation sits upon today.

In a question and answer document, the engineer said if more than 18 piles are installed, “the construction schedule will be extended, and the building will settle and tilt a little more during this period.”

“We judge that the 18-pile solution offers an optimal solution between additional settlement and benefit gained.”

In an exclusive investigation, NBC Bay Area reported Wednesday that an expert review of the perimeter pile upgrade plan found there was a one- to four-day-long delay in summer 2021 between excavating the soil for the existing six pilings and injecting grout to minimize soil collapse.

That gap between excavating and injecting grout went against protocol and “could very well explain the comparatively rapid settlement and tilting that occurred during pile installation in August.”

In an email, Douglas Elmets, spokesperson for the Millennium Tower Homeowners Association, said the perimeter pile plan won’t stop the building’s sinking “until the piles are driven into bedrock and attached to the foundation, which will occur later this year.”

In a Thursday letter to the Millennium Tower Association, the San Francisco Department of Building Inspection said it approved a modified procedure to continue the preexisting pilot pile installation plan, and was reviewing Hamburger’s revised retrofit proposal.

In a statement to NBC News, spokesperson Patrick Hannan said SFDBI and the Engineering Design Review Team are “currently reviewing the proposed revised plan — which we only recently received.”

“Assuming we continue to receive information in a timely manner, we aim to complete our review by February 28 … the new proposal will need a revised permit to proceed,” Hannan added.

SFDBI said they would inspect between each additional pilot pile installation to ensure work was proceeding as expected.

NBC News reported in 2016 via a public records request that the Millennium Tower was previously expected by its builders to settle a maximum of 5.5 inches by the year 2028.

Tim Fitzsimons is a reporter for NBC News. he/him

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An atmospheric river drenched the greater San Francisco Bay Area for three days, resulting in impressive rainfall.

A gauge on Mount Tamalpais recorded the most rainfall, at 11.37 inches, the National Weather Service said. Some of the highest peaks in the Santa Cruz Mountains and Santa Lucia Mountains along the Big Sur coast received 9 to 10 inches of rain. Gauges in San Francisco measured between 3 and 4 inches.

Here’s a look at the Weather Service’s 72-hour precipitation totals and a map from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration for locations in the Bay Area:

-Mount Tamalpais: 11.37 inches
-Ben Lomond Mountain: 10.06 inches
-Anderson Peak, Big Sur: 9.49 inches
-Boulder Creek: 9.32 inches
-Woodacre: 7.80 inches
-Santa Pink: 7.25 inches
– Saratoga: 7.21 inches
-Ross: 6.81 inches
-Cats: 5.95 inches
-The sling: 5.25 inches
-Orinda Fire Station: 4.98 inches
-Sunset District, San Francisco: 4.23 inches
-Oakland Hills: 4.78
-San Francisco International Airport: 4.03 inches
-Oakland: 3.95 inches
-Briones: 3.83 inches
-San Francisco, Embarcadero: 3.46 inches
-Travis Airforce Base: 3.40 inches
-Napa County Airport: 3.39 inches
-Novato: 2.46 inches
-Concord, Buchanan field: 2.43 inches
– Livermore Airport: 1.63 inches
– Mountain View, Moffett Field: 1.13 inches

The storm’s moisture hose was focused on the Central Coast Tuesday morning, but isolated showers and brief heavy rains remained in the Bay Area forecast. Cold air has entered the region, creating an unstable atmosphere and creating the opportunity for thunderstorms. Snow showers can also occur on the region’s highest peaks, such as Mount Diablo in the East Bay and Mount Hamilton in the South Bay.

Rain showers are expected to ease Tuesday night through Wednesday morning before a second weak and cold storm moves across the Bay Area Wednesday night through Thursday. This should bring another round of light to moderate rainfall to much of the region, with a possible 1 to 3 inches in coastal areas, 0.50 to 1 inch in the North Bay valleys and the Bay Area’s inner hills and 0.25 to 0.50 inch for most other areas.

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What’s to impress the 14th-century Leaning Tower of Pisa with its leaning when there is a modern building that leans even more? San Francisco’s Millennium Tower, one of the city’s most dazzling residential buildings, now leans more than two feet north and west and continues to lean at a rate of three inches per year as it sinks into the ground. In fact, it’s already dropped between 17 and 18 inches. If the problem is not addressed, the building could eventually tilt 40 inches, the maximum it takes to function and most likely for the elevators and plumbing to work.

The Millennium Tower is located in San Francisco’s Financial District at Fremont Street and Mission Street and adjacent to the Salesforce Transit Center and a bus terminal. It is a 58-story, 645-foot tower and the tallest residential building in the city. It debuted to fanfare in 2009 and has its fair share of illustrious residents, including sports figure Joe Montana and Giants outfielder Hunter Pence.

In a contradiction that defies all odds, data shows about 10 inches of the entire 26-inch dip happened last year after work to stop the sinking. In an investigative report, NBC Bay Area revealed that drill logs show a one to four day gap between drilling and grout installation. In the article, the NC Bay Area stated, “While Millennium Fix officials did not address the issue to the authorities, some outside experts say such delays in grouting may well explain the comparatively rapid settlement and inclination experienced during the August piling installation.” performed.”

Construction crews gather for a meeting while working on the Millennium Tower to stabilize the foundation of the 645-foot tower.

Photo: Getty Images/San Francisco Chronicle

Repair engineer Ron Hamburger has admitted his team didn’t instruct contractors they hired, Shimmick Construction, on how to keep the tower from sinking and tipping while they drilled and dug into the ground. He told city regulators, “The procedures for installing piles were basically the prerogative of the contractor.”

“We didn’t tell them how to install piles,” Hamburger continued. “We specified that we needed piles of a certain diameter and strength. And he basically made these as a design build to install the stakes where he laid out the methods he would use to install them.

At this point, Hamburger says installing 18 steel tubes on bedrock 250 feet below the tower is the best way to stop — and maybe even reverse — some of the tilt. “The building continues to settle at a rate of about half an inch per year and tilt at a rate of about three inches per year,” Hamburger said in a public statement. “This happens regardless of whether we work on site or not,” he continued. “While the building remains secure, we believe the project needs to resume construction and complete this construction quickly.”

The San Francisco Department of Building Inspection has approved Hamburger’s proposal to install the 18 pipes and plans to inspect them after the project is complete.

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Millennium Tower in San Francisco, California on January 14, 2017. Source – Victorgrigas (CC BY-SA 4.0)

The Millennium Tower in San Francisco is now 26 inches off center, with 10 inches of that tilt occurring last year while work was underway on an alleged repair, according to the project’s chief engineer.

Civil Engineer Ronald O. Hamburger spoke Thursday at a hearing in the city proposing an updated solution for the building’s foundation, NBC Bay Area reported. Hamburger’s new proposal would be to reduce the originally proposed 52 piles to 18, claiming this would “minimize additional building settlement.”

The 58-story, 645-foot tower opened to residents in 2009. The estimated $350 million project consists of two buildings, the larger of which houses 419 luxury apartments, including a lavish $13 million 5,500 square foot penthouse. It is the tallest residential building in the city

The tower’s uneven settlement has caused cracks in the surrounding sidewalk and basement walls of the smaller, 12-story sister building next door. The tower is adjacent to the Salesforce Transit Center, a bus terminal and potential future rail terminus for the California high-speed rail network currently under construction.

In May 2021, a $100 million project to save the Millennium Tower from sinking was begun, but work was halted on August 2 because the building had contributed to its thinness; Incline 5 inches toward Fremont Street, 25 percent more than before.

A letter to the Millennium Tower’s general manager last month said the new, faster solution was needed after engineers identified two possible causes of apparent deterioration in the building’s settlement: “vibration of the ground associated with piling activity and accidental removal of excess soil as the stakes were installed.”

Experts have blamed nearby construction projects and a process known as “drainage” for the weakening of the ground beneath the tower, according to previous CNN reports.

“We begin this new year of 2022 as we ended last year and many years, with the Millennium Tower continuing to sink and tip,” City Supervisor Aaron Peskin said at last week’s hearing, according to NBC.

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SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — A 58-story luxury apartment building in San Francisco continues to sink, tilting at about 3 inches a year. The engineer responsible for repairing the problematic building says that without a repair, the luxury building’s incline could reach a pitch of 40 inches, which would be the point at which the elevators and plumbing would potentially stop working. KNTV-TV reports that the engineer told the San Francisco board of directors in an updated hearing last week that the building remains safe and that installing 18 steel piles on bedrock is the best way to stop the tilt and possibly one reverse part of it.

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SAN FRANCISCO – A 58-story luxury San Francisco apartment building continues to sink, sloping about three inches per year, said the engineer in charge of repairing the troubled building.

At the current pace with no fix, the Millennium Tower could reach a 40-inch (1 meter) slope in just a few years, which would be the point where the elevators and plumbing may stop working, said Ron Hamburger, the technician.

Hamburger told the San Francisco Board of Supervisors in an update hearing last week that the building would remain secure and that installing 18 steel piles underground was the best way to stop the tipping and possibly reverse some of it, reported KNTV TV.

“The building continues to rise at a rate of about half an inch a year and lean at a rate of about three inches a year,” he told supervisors last week. “It does this whether we work on site or not.”

The Millennium Tower opened with fanfare in 2009 and all 419 apartments sold out quickly. Celebrity residents included former San Francisco 49er Joe Montana, late venture capitalist Tom Perkins, and San Francisco Giants outfielder Hunter Pence.

But by 2016, the building had sunk four inches into the soft ground and landfill of San Francisco’s dense financial district. It was also sloped, creating a 5 cm slope at the base and a 6 inch (15 cm) slope at the top. Local residents sued the developer and designers.

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Posted: Jan 10, 2022 / 12:17 PM PST
/ Updated: Jan 10, 2022 / 12:17 PM PST

This September 26, 2016 photo shows the Millennium Tower in San Francisco. (AP Photo / Eric Risberg, File)

The Millennium Tower in San Francisco continues to sink, leaning about three inches a year, said the engineer in charge of repairing the troubled building.

Ron Hamburger said the luxury building’s slenderness at the current speed could reach a 40-inch slope, which would be the point where the elevators and plumbing might stop working, in just a few years without repair.

Hamburger told the San Francisco Board of Supervisors in an update hearing last week that the building would remain secure and that installing 18 steel piles underground was the best way to stop the tipping and possibly reverse some of it, reported KNTV TV.

“The building continues to rise at a rate of about half an inch a year and lean at a rate of about three inches a year,” he told supervisors last week. “It does this regardless of whether we work on site or not.”

The 58-story tower opened to fanfare in 2009 and all 419 apartments quickly sold out. High profile residents included former San Francisco 49er Joe Montana, late venture capitalist Tom Perkins, and Giants outfielder Hunter Pence.

But by 2016, the building had sunk four inches into the soft ground and landfill of San Francisco’s dense financial district. It was also sloped, creating a 5 cm slope at the base and a 6 inch (15 cm) slope at the top. Local residents sued the developer and designers.

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