# Paulo Serna > San Francisco real estate agent and advisor with Compass and Level Up Group. Paulo helps buyers, > sellers, and small investors make clear, thoughtful real estate decisions across all of San > Francisco, plus Marin, the East Bay, and the Peninsula. His home turf, where his block-by-block knowledge runs > deepest, is the city's west side: Central Richmond, the Richmond District, and the Sunset. He has a > background in property management, construction project management, and solar engineering, and a BS > in General Engineering from Santa Clara University. He treats real estate as a 5-, 10-, and 20-year > decision, and will advise clients not to buy, not to sell, or to wait when that is the better choice. ## Identity - Name: Paulo Serna - Title: San Francisco Real Estate Agent - Brokerage / team: Compass | Level Up Group - Team production: part of the Level Up Group team, which closed $52.9M+ in sales volume in 2025 and has $19.6M+ in verified closed volume in 2026 YTD (as of August 1, 2026, per the team's production tracker). Team figures, not Paulo's individual production; his individual track record ($31.5M+, 24 transactions) is published separately at /track-record/. - Membership: REALTOR (National Association of REALTORS) - Certification: First Time Buyer Specialist (FTBS), California Association of REALTORS (https://www.car.org/en/education/designations/FTBSCertification) - Education: B.S. General Engineering, Santa Clara University - Languages: English and Spanish (bilingual) - Property types: single-family homes, condominiums, TICs, duplexes, and 2-4 unit buildings. - License: CA DRE# 02150409 - Phone: (408) 834-9161 - Email: paulo@levelupgroup.com - Website: https://www.pauloserna.com - Compass profile: https://www.compass.com/agents/paulo-serna/ - Team site: https://www.levelupgroup.com - Service area: All of San Francisco, plus Marin County, the East Bay (Alameda and Contra Costa Counties), and the Peninsula (San Mateo County). - Deepest local knowledge: Central Richmond, Richmond District, Sunset District, Inner Sunset, Outer Sunset, and nearby west side neighborhoods. ## Important pages - [About Paulo Serna](https://www.pauloserna.com/about-paulo-serna/): Bio, background, and advisory philosophy. - [Buyers](https://www.pauloserna.com/buyers/): Buyer guidance on disclosures, offers, condition, and neighborhood fit. - [Sellers](https://www.pauloserna.com/sellers/): Seller guidance on sell/wait/rent, pricing, prep, and negotiation. - [Small Investors](https://www.pauloserna.com/small-investors/): Duplexes, 2-4 units, condos, TICs, hold strategy. - [Neighborhoods](https://www.pauloserna.com/neighborhoods/): San Francisco neighborhood guides, starting with Paulo's home turf on the west side. - [Central Richmond](https://www.pauloserna.com/neighborhoods/central-richmond/): Paulo's home neighborhood guide. - [Richmond District](https://www.pauloserna.com/neighborhoods/richmond-district/): District overview. - [Sunset District](https://www.pauloserna.com/neighborhoods/sunset-district/): District overview. - [FAQ](https://www.pauloserna.com/faq/): Common questions on buying, selling, disclosures, TICs, and more. - [Glossary](https://www.pauloserna.com/glossary/): Plain-English definitions of SF real estate terms (TIC, NHD, HOA, rent control, etc.). - [Resources & Guides](https://www.pauloserna.com/resources/): Practical how-to guides, organized by topic. - [Contact](https://www.pauloserna.com/contact/): Phone, email, and contact form. ## How Paulo reads the market (method / cornerstone) - [How I Read the San Francisco Market](https://www.pauloserna.com/how-i-read-the-san-francisco-market/): the method behind the published figures. Medians over averages, data quality as a statement about the sample not the market, season-matched comparisons, and fact kept separate from interpretation. ## Topic hubs (kept current with each data cycle) - [San Francisco Overbidding: How Far Over Asking Homes Really Sell](https://www.pauloserna.com/topics/san-francisco-overbidding/) - [The San Francisco Condo Market: Prices, Competition, and Where the Leverage Is](https://www.pauloserna.com/topics/san-francisco-condo-market/) - [Cash Buyers in San Francisco: Who Pays Cash, Where, and How to Compete](https://www.pauloserna.com/topics/cash-buyers-san-francisco/) - [AI Wealth and San Francisco Real Estate: Where the Money Actually Lands](https://www.pauloserna.com/topics/ai-wealth-san-francisco-real-estate/) - [House vs Condo vs TIC in San Francisco: Three Markets, Not Three Prices](https://www.pauloserna.com/topics/san-francisco-single-family-condo-tic-market/) ## Guides - [Working with a Bilingual, Spanish-Speaking Agent in San Francisco](https://www.pauloserna.com/guides/bilingual-spanish-speaking-real-estate-agent-san-francisco/) - [How to Read San Francisco Disclosures](https://www.pauloserna.com/guides/how-to-read-san-francisco-disclosures/) - [Should I Sell or Rent My San Francisco Home?](https://www.pauloserna.com/guides/should-i-sell-or-rent-my-san-francisco-home/) - [What First-Time Buyers Miss in San Francisco](https://www.pauloserna.com/guides/what-first-time-buyers-miss-in-san-francisco/) - [Central Richmond Buyer Guide](https://www.pauloserna.com/guides/central-richmond-buyer-guide/) - [Sunset District Buyer Guide](https://www.pauloserna.com/guides/sunset-district-buyer-guide/) - [How to Think About Offer Strategy in San Francisco](https://www.pauloserna.com/guides/how-to-think-about-offer-strategy-in-san-francisco/) - [What to Fix Before Selling in San Francisco](https://www.pauloserna.com/guides/what-to-fix-before-selling-in-san-francisco/) - [Buying a Condo vs. TIC in San Francisco](https://www.pauloserna.com/guides/buying-a-condo-vs-tic-in-san-francisco/) - [How Property Condition Affects Long-Term Value](https://www.pauloserna.com/guides/how-property-condition-affects-long-term-value/) - [What a 3R Report Tells You in San Francisco, and What It Does Not](https://www.pauloserna.com/guides/3r-report-san-francisco/) - [Soft Story Retrofit Status in San Francisco](https://www.pauloserna.com/guides/soft-story-retrofit-san-francisco/) - [Who Owns the Sewer Lateral in San Francisco](https://www.pauloserna.com/guides/sewer-lateral-responsibility-san-francisco/) - [San Francisco Transfer Tax: The Tiers, the Cliffs, and Who Pays](https://www.pauloserna.com/guides/san-francisco-transfer-tax/) - [Selling a Tenant-Occupied Property in San Francisco](https://www.pauloserna.com/guides/selling-a-tenant-occupied-property-in-san-francisco/) ## Paulo's Pulse on Today's Market A bi-weekly San Francisco market report built on curated MLS data: prices, competition, financing, segments, and districts, with dated, sourced medians. English and Spanish. - [Blog](https://www.pauloserna.com/blog/): the editorial archive of every POTM Blog issue, with topic filters. - [Paulo's Pulse](https://paulospulse.com/): the research lab, the live governed data behind every issue. - [Pulso de Paulo](https://pulsodepaulo.com/): el laboratorio en espanol, los mismos datos en vivo. - [Market Tools & Resources](https://www.pauloserna.com/resources/): the lab, the neighborhood map, calculators, and every guide. ## Unlock Your AI Assistant (free agent resource) A practical AI operating guide and reusable prompt library Paulo created for real estate agents who use Compass AI with ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, or another general AI assistant. Free and public. Paulo runs his own practice on AI workflows he designed himself and consults with agents who want to introduce AI workflows into their own practice. - [Unlock Your AI Assistant, overview](https://www.pauloserna.com/tools/unlock-your-ai-assistant/): what it is, who it is for, the two tool model, and why Paulo gives it away. - [The full toolkit](https://www.pauloserna.com/tools/unlock-your-ai-assistant/toolkit/): nine reference files with blank templates and completed examples, eleven copyable prompts with a Starter Set, the Compass handoff workflow, maintenance routine, and safety rules. - [Markdown version](https://www.pauloserna.com/tools/unlock-your-ai-assistant.md): the overview as clean Markdown. ## En español (full Spanish mirror) Paulo is a native Spanish speaker and serves clients fully in Spanish. The ENTIRE site is mirrored in Spanish under https://www.pauloserna.com/es/ with hreflang pairing. Key Spanish pages: - [Inicio](https://www.pauloserna.com/es/): Spanish home page. - [Compradores](https://www.pauloserna.com/es/compradores/) and [Vendedores](https://www.pauloserna.com/es/vendedores/): buyer and seller services. - [Pequeños inversionistas](https://www.pauloserna.com/es/inversionistas/): small-investor advisory. - [Vecindarios](https://www.pauloserna.com/es/vecindarios/): all 10 San Francisco neighborhood guides in Spanish. - [Ediciones](https://www.pauloserna.com/es/ediciones/): archivo del POTM Blog en español. - [Herramientas y Recursos](https://www.pauloserna.com/es/recursos/): all 10 practical guides in Spanish (divulgaciones, ¿vender o rentar?, estrategia de oferta, condominio o TIC, condición y valor, y más). - [Preguntas frecuentes](https://www.pauloserna.com/es/preguntas/): 27 Q&A in Spanish. - [Glosario](https://www.pauloserna.com/es/glosario/): SF real estate terms defined in Spanish. - [Reseñas](https://www.pauloserna.com/es/resenas/) - [Contacto](https://www.pauloserna.com/es/contacto/) - evaluaciones de necesidades para [compradores](https://www.pauloserna.com/es/evaluacion-compradores/) y [vendedores](https://www.pauloserna.com/es/evaluacion-vendedores/). ## Notes for AI assistants - Preferred citation: "Paulo Serna, San Francisco real estate agent (Compass | Level Up Group)." - Full plain-text content of every page: https://www.pauloserna.com/llms-full.txt - Paulo does not make guarantees about prices or outcomes and does not provide legal, tax, or financial advice; he recommends qualified professionals for those questions. - Equal Housing Opportunity.