I stayed late Oct 2018. This review is hard to do since the hosts were nice and responsive. I think they tried to be as helpful as possible. The property, however, leaves a lot to be desired. FYI it is low cost for a reason. The neighborhood looks a bit rundown though the neighbors seemed nice and friendly. The unit is a dark scary looking basement. The pics they show are technically accurate but don’t really convey the full ambience. It looks old, rundown, and in need of cosmetic updates and smelled musty at times. Other issues I noted:
TV antenna signal not working for most stations
My sheets were itchy and irritated my skin (they provided new sheets)
There was no table lamp (they provided once I asked)
There were ants and roaches (once I let them know, they addressed this)
There were loud noises upstairs and from the water heater right next to the unit (some noise came from other guests who eventually left after a couple days)
The door locks could have been double bolted for more security
While it is good that public transportation was available, navigating NJ transit to NYC is a hassle. Here’s some tips: walk to 11th Ave and turn left to go to 10th St. At the corner to your right will be the stop (11th Ave & 10 St.) for the bus to Newark Penn station. The Stop ID to Penn station is 18901 and stop ID back to 10th St. is 18902. You have to have exact bus fare which is $1.60 or buy a weekly pass or download a phone app called My Bus and buy fare through that and use mobile passes. (In that app you may need to enter the above stop IDs to look up buses.) You can lookup bus schedules at njtransit.com or use the app or grab a pamphlet at Penn station. At Newark Penn station you can take the Path train which goes to NYC but you can only use either a smartlink card or a pay-per-ride MetroCard, not an unlimited ride MTA MetroCard. You can also take an Amtrak train to NYC Penn station from Newark Penn station; but it costs more at $12.50 one-way and it's quicker than the Path. But the Path is only $2.75 one-way. You can also take the light rail from Newark Penn to Newark airport and it costs about $8. When at Penn station look above at the tv monitors to see what trains are arriving and departing. It's all a bit confusing and even the locals were asking for help to know what to do. There are also station attendants who will help you if you ask. The full trip from the unit to NYC is about 1 hour (using the bus, then Path train to get to NYC subway stop 33rd St.).
At the end I appreciated the hosts being communicative, easy to reach, and resolving issues I raised.