Have a Marine buddy from the east coast whose daughter, fresh from her masters program, is going to be working at Cedar Sinai Kerlan-Jobe Institute in Santa Monica.

Looking for apartment recommendations for a mid twenties single female in that area.

Also go and no go areas for Santa Monica and the areas immediately around there.

Thanks for any and all information.

I don't live in Santa Monica, BUT I can assure you that
if I lived there, I would NOT be "out" after 8pm.

Yes, it's got it's "upscale dining" and "hotel/entertainment" scene,
BUT the Crime, rape, murders are "up there", too.

That's just one of the many locations where the riots, looting,
ANTIFA "take over" was rampant after the "George Floyd Killing".

In case you didn't know...

Anyone travelling there would be safest moving around by car and avoiding walking around,
especially alone and after dark.

I've been a resident of Los Angeles all my life, ( 59 years ) and have avoided Santa Monica
for about 20 years, even though I've been there dozens of times before that to have
fun at the great restaurants that were there at the time.

I'm sure more info will flow in from other people.

I'd do a search of crime news over the last 12 months to get a sense of what it's like now.

BTW, congratulations on a great career, great employment situation!

I would also recommend against living in Santa Monica.  It is not a safe place.

I think you are more likely to find that while portions of Santa Monica may be sketchy, parts will also be unaffordable good.  It buts up to Pacific Palisades and Brentwood on one side and Venice Beach on the other.  You'll want current local advice.  Obviously there are world class medical institutions, network and media operations, arts districts, Wilshire Bl. etc.  But it tends really liberal, so, look local.

Santa Monica is hodgepodge. There is a suburban area, near the airport and college, that is really high end and expensive. There is a metropolitan area to the northeast that is full of high rise buildings and businesses = more crime happens here. The Beach area is high end but lots of scumbags and homeless hang around. The area towards Venice is so-so, expensive but still lots of homeless. The "North of Montana" area is mixed. High end properties/condos and businesses. Super expensive but probably safe, a lot of celebrities live near this area + Pacific Palisades.

Spot Crime interactive map

Santa Monica is waaaay expensive for a single/20's.  Adjacent venice may be cheaper.  But this is what she'll be wading through.  I don't know if nationwide news really shows what's there.  

The video asks why the homeless, "... can do this in Venice but not in Santa Monica?"

The answer is law enforcement.  Santa Monica was first to allow homeless vagrants free reign (~1990's).  As a result, the vagrants all went there, knowing there was no enforcement.  Property values dropped.  Crime rates skyrocketed.  It got really, really bad.

It got so bad, they stepped up enforcement.  They had to.  The property owners demanded it.  City Council members were elected on an enforcement platform.  It got better, a little bit better, but not much.

Venice was NEVER nice, never safe.  It always had a dark side to it - gangs, drugs, vagrants.  Now, it is worse, and not just at the beach.

Personally, I would not live in Venice.  BTW, it was, literally, a choice I made.  I made that choice back when things were a lot better in Venice than today.

I don't know what to recommend to the OP.

I recommend against Santa Monica and Venice - a hard NO!.  That would include West LA, too.

Brentwood and Pacific Palisades are hard to recommend because of the prices for a young person starting out.

Farther south, Marina del Rey, Playa del Rey, Westchester may be a bit better - lower costs, less crime but longer commutes and higher commuting costs.

The South Bay beach communities - a little more reasonable cost but much longer commutes (~1 hour each way in rush hour traffic) and higher commuting cost.  Definitely safer, by far.

Basically, this situation makes it difficult for employers to hire and retain qualified people.  Yes, it's THAT bad.

This is getting too personal, too close, so no answer is needed.  I was just trying to help.

1 br/1bth rentals start at around $1.8k/month.  It is easy to find $3k-$4k/month.  All the cautions given above still apply.

I would recommend Culver City and adjacent areas for her. (Palms, Beverlywood, etc.)
She will have to get a roommate most likely, housing is very expensive in the West LA area.