Dana's place is very centrally located – walking distance from many restaurants and sites. The apartment is spacious and has some nice architectural details and the bedroom is sunny and bright. There is also a small patio (which I didn't see in the listing description when I booked) but which is great. The neighbors (while they do have small children who make noise upstairs) are very friendly and respectful. The block absolutely feels safe (although I am coming from NYC so I am not a stranger to cities and as in any city you'll want to exercise street smarts). We also found parking on the block to be relatively easy – we got a spot on the block or on Santa Monica BLVD every single time we tried to park including after 8PM on weeknights, but we are New Yorkers with a mini SUV. If you have a large truck or are not experienced at parking in smaller spaces, it could be more difficult. Also, there is a lot of construction going on on the block which means spots are often taken up by work trucks and/or signs preventing parking due to ongoing construction.
The apartment does need a fair amount of maintenance (most of the windows don't open or are very difficult to close once open, there are some cracks in the walls and peeling paint, and most of the furniture is stained – although it's dark and doesn't really show). There is also no host living on the property so the listing is a little out of date with regard to that. However, Dana did make an early morning trip to the property when our door's lock stopped working so she is relatively available, even though she lives far away. I wouldn't recommend this place for a super long stay – it was fine, but is probably better as a crash pad for people wanting to see sites in Hollywood and surrounding areas.