As with many places there were positives and negatives. On balance, the positives carry the day here.
In the plus column, the place is cozy, mostly quiet (more on that later), in an interesting neighbourhood, convenient to two streetcar lines and reasonably priced by Toronto standards. Jeff is friendly and gives you your space. Getting the key is painless and the wifi is good.
As for the negatives, there are a few, but nothing that could not be easily remedied.
There is plenty of mileage on the kitchen and there were issues with the plumbing. It is functional, but nothing more. Some of the implements need replacing and it would certainly not be expensive to replace the dollar store spatula that is half of its former self and yet left in the drawer, or the broken toilet brush (which Jeff replaced with the upstairs one upon request), or the clogged bathroom sink that takes forever to drain. Attention to little details like this before the guest arrives can really improve the overall experience. They are minor annoyances, but they do tend to add up.
The bathroom could use a thorough clean, in particular the shower area where there is a good colony of black mold in the grouting and the ceiling.
The final gripe for us, though this will vary for people depending on their tolerance levels, is the noise issue, which has been mentioned by another reviewer. It is the nature of these old Toronto houses that noise does travel, but for those not used to it, be warned: You will hear every footfall and every bass note from the host's stereo/TV. He does like his music, which is fine, but if you are an early to bed type it can get a bit wearing at 11.30 PM when it's a little like being under a club, to the point where you can actually feel the bass.
I'm sure that it doesn't seem particularly loud upstairs, but the basement functions as an echo chamber and some people may not tolerate it well. I think these sounds could be largely ameliorated by some carpets, especially the footsteps. It is just part of the deal in a basement suite in an old house, but it is something to be aware of when making your choice.
Having said all that, I have seen much worse and as I said earlier, on balance it is a good place and the price to value ratio is pretty good. A little more attention to detail and anticipating problems before the guests have to raise them would make it excellent.