Great place in terms of the price.

Journal Square station is about a 11 minutes walk away (or a 5 minute jog, if you are in a hurry). It's a PATH station, though you could be in midtown (near time square etc.) in less than 45 minutes of leaving the front door. You are in lower Manhattan even sooner, within 3 stops. It can be a bit cumbersome if you are planning to spend all your time in NYC, but it is a very nice place if you basically just want a place to sleep. Transport can be infrequent late after midnight, but it is good.

The place is very close to a high street. The local area isn't much and there is nothing to do near the house. That said, there are quite a lot of grocery shops and fast food places in the area. Also I felt safe walking back to the place late at night at around 3am.

The house is very clean and well maintained. The 1-2 person room is very small with a large bed. There is pretty much has just enough floor space for a few bags, though a wardrobe and several cupboards are provided.

There are very good facilities for laundry and drying clothes though there is a charge (I think it was $5). There is very nice kitchen and dining space with a very impressive TV. However, the house rules are that you should not use the area after 10 pm.

There are two showers/bathrooms, plus I was very impressed with the jugs of filtered water on each floor and on-the-tap boiled water.

I didn't meet Billy whilst there, but Grace (billy's mother) was friendly and helpful in any questions I had about transport and the local area.