Long-term tenants of 1120 Jackson St. in San Francisco have formed a union to fight evictions at the 16-unit building. The group, representing more than half of the building’s residents, many of them immigrants and elderly, was joined at a rally Monday by organizers who said recent eviction notices had less to do with owner-issued housekeeping citations than with clearing the way for the owners to boost rents.
Under city law, landlords must meet in good faith with a tenant association representing more than half of a building’s residents.
“We feel that the landlord is trying to take us out one by one,” said Kit Ying Mak. “My family cannot afford my mom to get evicted in her condition. My neighbors’ support has given me strength.”
Mak moved into the building with her husband and children in 2021 to care for her ailing mother, who has lived in another unit there for decades. Eviction notices came soon after the building changed hands. Now she is among the tenants who have formed an association to negotiate with the new landlord. Mak’s case is one of six that the Asian Law Caucus is handling.
“Our clients have all lived peacefully at this building for many years, some for many decades, with the longest tenancy being over 45 years,” said Shelby Nacino, program director for the caucus.
Kin Wong has lived in a 1120 Jackson St. apartment for more than three decades. He and his neighbors are organizing to fight being forced out. Credit: Neal Wong / San Francisco Public Press 
Members of the newly formed 1120 Jackson Tenant Association and their allies rally outside the building, chanting against eviction notices that have upended the lives of long-term residents. Credit: Neal Wong / San Francisco Public Press 
Kit Ying Mak moved into the building to care for her mother, who has lived there for 24 years. Her eviction case is one of six the Asian Law Caucus is handling. Credit: Neal Wong / San Francisco Public Press 
When the first notice to quit arrived, Sue Yeng Yan called her family and cleaned up the apartment to address the concerns cited in the notice. But building management still won’t accept her rent. After decades at 1120 Jackson St., she’s terrified of being forced out. Credit: Neal Wong / San Francisco Public Press 
Gen Fujioka, director of policy at the Chinatown Community Development Center, said his housing clinic has seen an increase in landlords using eviction tactics on long-term residents. “We were concerned with the overall trend,” he said. Credit: Neal Wong / San Francisco Public Press 
“We are turning seniors away because we do not have the capacity,” said Laura Chiera, executive director and managing attorney for Legal Assistance for the Elderly. Her organization has seen eviction cases like those at 1120 Jackson St. rise across San Francisco in the last two years. Credit: Neal Wong / San Francisco Public Press 
“Unite to protect our home. Eviction must go!” Yi Hung Wong, president of the Community Tenants Association, a longstanding tenants group in the city, led the chant in Cantonese as residents rallied to fight displacement. Credit: Neal Wong / San Francisco Public Press 
Molly Goldberg, director of the San Francisco Anti-Displacement Coalition, warned that the real estate industry is using the expected AI tech surge as an opportunity to push out long-term residents and profit off meteoric increases in rent. Credit: Neal Wong / San Francisco Public Press 
“San Francisco is back — evicting seniors, evicting tenants,” said Peter Stevens of the San Francisco Tenants Union, noting that eviction notices in the city have risen 141% since 2024. Credit: Neal Wong / San Francisco Public Press
Click arrows to view photos in carousel. Credit: Neal Wong/San Francisco Public Press
Nacino said the new landlord, Nabob Hill LLC, did not provide any warning or clear communication about the housekeeping issues before handing out eviction notices.
Daniel Bornstein, a real estate lawyer representing Nabob Hill LLC, told the San Francisco Public Press in an email that “the owners have extended numerous courtesy notices to the tenants.” He said the notices were an effort to address fire and life safety issues, and that photographs substantiated allegations of cluttering and unsanitary conditions.
Nacino called the eviction notices “distressing surprises.” She said the timing is no coincidence, pointing to the building’s sales listing, which stated that a new owner could more than double the rent by replacing long-term tenants with new ones. The listing suggested a “224% rental upside achievable through unit turnover.”
This isn’t an isolated incident, said Laura Chiera, managing attorney and executive director of Legal Assistance for the Elderly. Her organization has seen the number of eviction lawsuits in San Francisco rise over the past two years.
“We represent over 450 seniors and adults with disabilities in eviction lawsuits every year,” Chiera said. “We are turning seniors away because we do not have the capacity to take all of the evictions that seniors in San Francisco are facing.”
Chiera said landlords across the city are using various tactics to remove long-term tenants.
“Sometimes they receive a buyout offer or an Ellis Act eviction ensues,” Chiera said, referring to the California law that allows property owners to evict tenants if they take their building off the rental market. “Sometimes landlords find other ways to evict long-term tenants, often serving different types of eviction notices, rent increases, often baseless, with the real goal of turning over long-term rent-controlled units.”
Molly Goldberg, director of the San Francisco Anti-Displacement Coalition, said property owners are betting on profit from the real estate market ahead of an expected tech surge.
“In anticipation of this new AI-driven tech boom, we have seen these sneaky ways to claim that you need to get out,” Goldberg said. “The real estate industry can capture as much of that wealth from our communities and take it and run.”
The number of notices to quit in the city has risen by 141% since 2024, said Peter Stevens of the San Francisco Tenants Union. These notices are the first step in evicting tenants.
“When I hear people say San Francisco’s back, honestly, I agree,” Stevens said. “San Francisco is back — evicting seniors, evicting tenants.”
Zhe Wu contributed to this story.