The pros - this place is larger than many NYC apartments and is in a convenient location. However, this feels like a place you stay with a bunch of friends when you are 21 years old and have a tight budget so you don't care about the quality of the place. It definitely is not worth more than $150 per night, though, and we were charged a lot more. Here are some major cons to consider:
1. The bed listing is inaccurate - both rooms have double/full beds. This may not be a big deal for some, but for people 6 ft or taller, a double bed is too short. We only looked for places where the master had a minimum queen size bed. We hope the owner corrects this listing soon so others do not have the same issue.
2. There are considerable issues with black mold on the walls, particularly in the bedrooms. We took lots of pictures and I personally have bad mold allergies, so I lived on medication during the four days there.
3. The place shows signs of rodents. We heard them in the walls and found a rat trap behind the couch.
4. We could not adjust the heat because this would “cause a leak.” This is a major issue in NYC in January (and the owner has notes around the house not to adjust the heat, so clearly he knows there is an issue).
5. The smell in the place was horrible when we arrived. My niece best described this as the smell of rotting fish. We had to buy disinfectant spray and spray it everywhere to make the smell tolerable.
6. The place was in a general state of disrepair. Blinds were missing so we could not change in the bedrooms and multiple things were broken throughout the house. Even the dresser drawers were unusable and just taped together.
I honestly do not know why there are so many positive reviews. The only thing I can guess is that some people rented this place for a lot less money and so they were expected it to be a junky place and just appreciated the size and location. I did notice this rental rate for this place changes considerably different times of year. Regardless, if you are hoping for something relatively nice - or at least clean with everything functioning - I suggest looking elsewhere.