Positives first! Can’t beat the proximity to the beach. It’s pretty spacious for a studio and the bed is huge and comfy! Wifi was great, cable and a TV included. The complex is secure with a locked large metal gate. The outdoor patio/garden area is super cute! And hardly ever used so you can usually have it to yourself.
Negatives.... as far as host interactions I was not impressed. First of all, although parking is included, I was notified only 12 hours in advance that I would have to move my vehicle every Monday morning which was not communicated to me at any point during our messages prior to booking (big deal in LA, especially this area since there is extremely limited free parking in the vicinity). When I tried to address it, it took a long time to resolve and had to involve Airbnb two times. Eventually was resolved. Second of all, I discovered that the host entered the apartment without notifying or asking me for the “emergent” reason that the CABLE wasn’t working. Huge privacy violation for an absolutely non emergent issue.
As for the unit itself, the kitchen was missing quite a few cooking items that one might hope for in a long term stay, so bring your essentials! The pans were dirty and had food remnants crusted to them. The microwave didn’t work so had to buy one, but found a cheap one and left it for future guests.
This goes without saying but it’s right next to the pier, so the area is busy and loud. Plenty of transients and tourists yelling/honking/carrying on all day and night. Several times I came home and there was a random car parked in my reserved spot (which is a tight squeeze- careful if you have a truck/SUV) and it was a pain to wait around until they left... again very limited free parking in the area.
Oh also Amazon doesn’t have access to the gate so if they don’t get there when USPS does, your packages could be left unsecured although personally I never had anything stolen!