Carl is a good host and new to it. He's kind and speaks professionally. The outside of the place is terrifying upon first glance. The inside is newly remodeled, but still dirty (pee all over toilet, stove counters ect not wiped), fortunately there's cleaning supplies provided. I stayed 2 weeks so I cleaned several times. The bedding seemed to be clean, towels seemed brand new a couple washed.
There's nothing in the unit, a bed, a side table, a desk, a chair, a few plates, silver ware, few pots, nothing to really live with is provided. I brought everything I could possibly need with me so I was fine. It does get cold, it's a basement, there's no heat, so I'd turn on the oven to warm it up, there's no ac, so I'd open the window (it opens a small crack) to air it out after a hot shower.
Being a basement upstairs is very loud, there's no TV in the unit so u can hear above blasting theirs, and music, no quiet hours. They'll go til 2am or later some nights. You'll also hear them have sex around 5am most days. Parking is hit or miss, neighbors feel entitled to thier "spots", so sometimes expect to walk 3 blocks and get drenched if its raining. Most neighbors are kind, I walked the neighborhood alone with my small dog, if you're uneasy about rough ghetto areas then this isn't the place for you. Night time avoid walking the streets.
There's a loud old train track right by the house you'll hear it sometimes. All and all he needs to provide more amenities as there's literally nothing but what's mentioned above and the price is a little high considering that. Since I came with a carload of stuff (towels, blankets, robe, slipper, all cooking supplies, ect) it wasn't bad for me. Arriving with just a backpack and clothing like most tourists would be torture.
Carl is working on improvements so I believe in the future it may be better. It is very dark there, I bought a night light and put it in the outlet since there's only ceiling lights which are too bright at night. it's in far rockaway very deep far into queens away from everything so keep that in mind too if you plan on visiting the city.