We arrived late from JFK and someone was here to welcome us even if it was past midnight already. Make sure to plan your journey from JFK to the house in advance as it can take a while ! If you're group traveling, I can only recommend sharing a ride, at least to downtown Manhattan and take the PATH from there. We didn't meet Manuel in person but he was always available via messages if we needed.
Manuel's house is located near the Communipaw neighbourhood and about ~15/20min walk from Journal Square PATH Station. A bus can take you there, or you can share a Uber (many arounds) if you're traveling with friends. Going to Manhattan takes from 35min to 50min depending on where you're off to. We never felt unsafe because we were always traveling together (4 people), however you could find it a bit intimidating if you're on your own.
We stayed on the 3rd floor, the stairs are alright but a bit narrow, be careful if you have big luggages ! You get a view of Manhattan from the corridor, and can spot the Empire State Building if you look closely ;)
Everything was clean and tidy. The bedroom facing the street can be a bit noisy early in the morning, we recommend using ear plugs and a sleeping mask to get a better sleep. The kitchen was equiped with everything you'd need if you wanna cook there / make coffee / store food. The bathroom was clean as well (shower gel and shampoo included). Manuel provided enough towels for our entire stay and asked us if we needed fresh ones and regularly made sure everything was ok !
We flew back from Newark Airport which is ~20min away by car from the house. Manuel was kind enough to keep our bags until we left in the late afternoon, so we didn't have to carry them with us all day and it allowed us to enjoy our last day there !
In a nutshell, we had a good stay at Manuel's place and the price was more than alright if you plan to visit NYC on a budget.