Built to house a furniture factory in 1922, the historic 15,000-square-foot brick and timber building at 310 7th Street was purchased by designer Ken Fulk for $3.05 million in 2007 and subsequently renovated and “reimagined as a sanctuary of opulence,” with three levels of design/office space and a stunning top-floor residential loft and roof deck.
Touting an estimated replacement cost of $10.5 million as finished, not including the value of the three Western SoMa lots upon which “The Magic Factory” and its 11 car parking lot (308 7th Street) stand, the property returned to the market priced at $8.9 million in 2022, including the lots, a price which has now been reduced to $7.7 million or roughly $513 per square foot.
It’s been more than a couple of years since I’ve seen a broker in San Francisco touting “discount to replacement cost”.
This light industrial property was stripped of all its original industrial characteristics and is now functionally obsolescent, and a curious monument to vanity for digital economy hipsters. Would it be possible to rent the parking lot to the City for use for homeless tent dwellers?
I disagree. This one of the few high-end lofts in San Francisco that maintains its industrial feel without compromising fit and finish and doesn’t feel contrived or sterile.
Industrial “feel”? What does that mean? Sound like residential agent who has never handled industrial properties. This property is dead for any future potential industrial use, its hipster playpen.
Not an agent but I agree. The highest and best use for this property is no longer industrial, it’s residential/design – which is more valuable.
If it has roll up door and parking, ground floor could have potential for showroom space, but don’t know if that would be permitted use with the city. I’m not understanding the 2nd floor space.
There are four levels, “three levels of design/office space and a stunning top-floor residential loft,” as outlined above and including the mezzanine.
From what I remember pre-pandemic, the ground floor was mostly “used” as a vehicle to try impress tech investors from out of town or hold the occasional tech meetup.
Now is the time – if you’d believe Sam Altman, hey, there’s 7 trillion out there in cash that need to flow into AI pronto. A place like this makes perfect sense for pitches that include that inescapable exponential-TAM-growth slide. /s
The listing I saw categorizes the Building Class as ‘B’, opulent furnishings notwithstanding.
I’m not an expert on this market, but just going by what I’ve read recently, it seems like the kind of startup that would use this space has migrated to other parts of The City, or to Class ‘A’ properties that they can now lease for similar amounts of money. The buyer will have to be a young proprietor or principal of some kind of boutique firm who really wants to live in the top-floor residential loft unit and maintain offices on the lower floors, in order to reduce their operating expenses.
I agree with Fact’s characterization of this property’s current state. The longer it stays on the market, the less it will be worth, and it’s going to be a long, slow slide downward. Last time I looked a taller, but similar vintage building at 982-998 Market (about three blocks away from here) was still for sale.
What an incredible home this would be for a tech founder who hit it big already and is starting another company.
– Event space on the first floor for networking and external-facing parties.
– Offices on Floors 2/3, running your company.
– Home/more intimate events on the 4th + roofdeck.
This is an absolutely epic live/work loft.
Ah yes, because nothing say “hitting it big” like living in Western SoMa.
Depending upon the property and personality, that’s actually true.
It’s not my preferred location either, but this is a rare opportunity. I know multiple tech people who prefer the gritty, industrial aesthetic and live around here, dabble in the BDSM world, like playing loud music late at night etc.
We know people with high 9-figure exits that chose to live in Western SoMa. Of course, high 9-figures might not be considered to be “hitting it big” to some, to each their own…
Anyone know the reason why Ken Fulk is selling this property?
Maybe he’s moving into his church.
Doesn’t help that the City is buying and installing a social service live in treatment center directly across the street at 333 7th.