The Haight Apartments for Rent

Mention the Haight neighborhood in San Francisco and those of a certain age will recall the free-wheeling party in the 1960s called the Summer of Love. During the summer of 1967, the Haight became a haven for lovers of rock and roll music and boldly colored, free-flowing clothing. Dancing in the streets was common and the atmosphere of a non-stop party prevailed.

Though the Summer of Love and the free-wheeling era of the 1960s ended long ago, remnants of that counterculture remain. Bold, bright colors are still in style. The Red Victorian, a boutique hotel on Haight Street, is still painted an eye-popping red. Nine other colors were used for the gingerbread trim on the 1904 building. A row of Victorian homes on Waller Street are so colorful that they are known collectively as the “Painted Ladies.”

Haight Street stores are equally inventive. Anyone walking by the Piedmont Boutique, a clothing store, would find it hard to miss the giant pair of legs in fishnet stockings and red high-heels hanging out the upstairs window. It is a billboard in 3-D. In June of each year, on the second Sunday, part of Haight Street closes down for the Haight-Ashbury Street Fair, a nostalgic tribute to the Summer of Love.

The Haight was one of the few neighborhoods spared from the fires sparked by the 1906 earthquake, which explains why so many of the late 19th-century homes survived. Most homes were built before 1939. Row houses, small apartment buildings, and a few high rises built in later years make up the bulk of housing choices. Golden Gate Park’s Panhandle is on the northern end, and Buena Vista Park with its off-leash dog park is to the south.