Looking for housing recommendations for my daughter who will be doing an internship in Santa Monica this summer.
I checked out some places after a google search but most are fully furnished, expensive apartment buildings more suited for individuals on a substantial salary. Any thoughts or ideas are appreciated. Thank you.
Have you considered UCLA summer housing? Though note the quarter system means it’s not available until mid June.
http://summer-hostel.hhs.ucla.edu
I’m guessing Westwood (UCLA) has a lot of off-campus housing for students who won’t be there in the summer. Perhaps you can find students who would want to sublease for the summer. Of course, this is assuming your D will have a car.
Yes, depending on your timing there’ll be tons of sublets in Westwood. My own D will probably have one, too. Westwood is 15-25 mins drive from Santa Monica, depending on location and traffic.
Look into summer sublets in Palms and Sawtelle as well, where most of the UCLA grad students live. Westwood rents tend to be noticeably more expensive.
The light rail now goes all the way to Santa Monica, making Palms an easier commute than from Westwood if you’re taking public transit.
Transportation, not as bad as one might think.
While deciding summer housing, look at the maps for the light rail system and Santa Monica Blue Bus.
Decades ago, before I could drive, I took the Blue Bus from Santa Monica to Westwood without any problem. My mother, when she gave up her car, would take it downtown to hear the LA Philharmonic. Another relative more recently has used the light rail to go from SM to Dodger Stadium (to avoid traffic & parking).
As someone who learned to drive as a teenager in Santa Monica & drives regularly in NYC, similar to @ProfessorPlum168, I would have assumed a car is like life blood. it’s not! 
Yeah if you lived in the right areas, the light rail or some of the express buses are decent transportation options. Nowhere close to NYC though. It’s too bad the light rail into UCLA is a few years away.
@ProfessorPlum168 - actually, if there’s housing in Westwood, a car would not be required as there are buses that travel right down Wilshire Blvd, as well as Santa Monica Blvd. -
Suggest aggressively searching for UCLA student sub lease. I know 3 students that are sub letting their room or shared room this summer. Their quarter ends about Jun 14
There are actually 2 Facebook pages for UCLA rentals and subletting. My DS had an internship in LA last summer and that’s how we found the sublet situation that worked for him. My advice is to have the student join the pages (you have to request to join) and then jump on anything likely that comes up. There is always AirBnB too!
My D had a internship in Hollywood a couple of summers ago and did a sublet from a UCLA student in the Sawtelle area. D was lucky that she also got a parking space. Be aware that UCLA does not finish school until sometime in early June. My D’s internship was from mid June to mid September as her school was also on the quarter system like UCLA.