Avoid Long Term Stay
By A Yahoo! Contributor, 7/2/11
This place is just 'OK'. I do not recommend it for an extended period of time. It was cheap and this is a case where you get what you pay for.
1. Roaches. There was a terrible roach problem. You'd see them in your room, in the hallways, the staircase and in the laundry room. Unfortunately, with the rooms being so packed together w/ space under the doors and baseboards, keeping your space clean has little to do with prevention. It gets worse if your room happens to be close to the trash closet. It's weird because most floors aren't dirty and the cleaning staff works hard.
2. Noise. No insulation what-so-ever. Again, cheap rent, cheap building. On one side of me I could hear people having sex, the other I could hear a normal level phone conversation.
3. Respect. You're really at the mercy of the other people on the floor. Sometimes the hall smelt like armpits, people would leave their dirty, wet shoes and socks in the hall, leave feces and menstrual blood on the toilet of the communal bathroom, leave filthy dishes full of food in the common area. It's really the luck of the draw - you may be placed on a floor with people who have a different standard of living and cleanliness.
Those were big issues for me. Contrary to popular belief, a building isn't BOUND to have roaches just because it is in NYC. I also value my quiet - this is what made I-House unpleasant for me.
There are some pros though. The staff, while very nosy, are almost all very friendly and you get to know people really quickly. The cafeteria food is very repetitive, but it is quality and it tastes good. There are also many events that occur in the building itself. If you're a social butterfly you'll love it.
Again, I would not live here again but if you can see past the bugs and you aren't sensitive to noise you should be fine. Just bring lots of disinfectant and hand-sanitizer.