I stayed at Simon's place while apartment hunting in NYC as an out-of-towner.
The location was amazing and centrally-located. The West Village is great of course, but I also happened to visit all five boroughs during my stay—something not as easily done from other neighborhoods.
The room, while small, was just what I needed and the apartment as a whole was very clean and well-kept (I was taking notes for when I move into my own NYC apartment). While I spent most of my time away, it was surprisingly quiet at night and I was able to get work done in the room before I left in the mornings. (Not to mention, as a soon-to-be-transplant, that the apartment itself gave me an excellent perspective on what to expect from a NYC apartment.)
Simon was a great and polite host, and was helpful in finding good cafes to check out as well!