Exterior of house. If you rent a car you have driveway space. There are 8 steps to enter the first f ... This is the front of the main floor. It's a nice place to sit and watch the day start in the morning ... This is the back living space. It gets a lot of afternoon sun. The couch is old but comfortable, Tha ... This space is next to the kitchen. Right now I only have 2 chairs but I'm going to replace them. The ... This is my piano which you are welcome to play as long as you don't eat or drink while you are playi ... The elliptical machine, though if you are visiting NYC you will probably get enough exercise walking ... This is the downstairs full bathroom, not any storage space but I normally have a set of plastic she ... These steps you will see right when you enter the house and they bring you to the second floor where ... Another view of the front area. The chair, from IKEA is very old but still works fine for sitting. T ... A cozy armchair in the front space. I sit here every morning and drink tea or coffee. There's a litt ... These spiral steps are newly re-carpeted and bring you from the second to the third floor. On the th ... This is the upstairs bathroom, full with a bathtub and shower.There isn't much/any storage in here b ... Another view of the sink area of the upstairs bathroom. My husband made the wood part of the sink. This is the first bedroom that you see when you climb the steps. It has new blue carpet. Right now t ... The desk for the first bedroom, this would all be empty for your stay. This is the finished attic space that you see when you go up those spiral staircases. It's empty bu ... This is a Therasage personal sauna with infrared lights. It's in the back room. This is our TV in the back room. It has Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime, Max and maybe a few others but ... This is the kitchen. It has all the normal kitchen things. It also has air fryer, coffee grinder, Ne ... The refrigerator, home style with happy magnets, artwork and family pictures. This is the 4th bedroom up in the 3rd floor. It's a finished attic space. It has new carpet. Notice ... Another view of the 3rd floor open area, you can hide up here for some peace/quiet or do some yoga. ... This is the smallest bedroom on the second floor, Here you see the single twin bed on a frame. In th ... This is the closet for the second smaller bedroom. It will be empty if you visit, the radiators have ... Another view of the smaller second bedroom. Empty bookshelf and dresser. A desk in the smaller second bedroom. There is only one window in that room It's great for sleeping, ... This is the main bedroom. The bed is queen size. It has a mattress topper on it. I would say it's on ... This is the dresser in the main bedroom, Most or all of it can be emptied for your stay, as well as ...

 

Non-Premium #41842

Comfortable and relaxed home near New York City!

House • Montclair NJ United States

    6 Guests   
    4 Bedrooms   
    2 Bathrooms   
  Primary home

Exchange types accepted

  Simultaneous  
  Non-Simultaneous  
  Non-Reciprocal  
  Hospitality  

Statistics

Listed  March 2025
Views  777

General Overview

My home is informal and relaxed, you will feel at home. It has nice natural light and open spaces. The recent changes in Airbnb and hotel prices have made visits to New York City very challenging. If you stay in Montclair you get the best of both worlds, easy access to the city and a nice green local area with a lot to do and places to explore further away.

The Space

If you look at the photos there are captions that explain everything, I still have to add photos of the main bedroom with the queen size bed and the second bedroom on the second floor with the single bed. I also have another single mattress and a double futon that can be used either in one of the bedrooms or in the upstairs open space or even in the back living room. We are informal and want people to feel comfortable. This is not luxury space of hotel like amenities, it's a home exchange in the true nature of home exchange so although I will declutter more before your visit, you can expect to find the things of a normal home. The photos pretty much show how it will be, except for the bedrooms where there are personal items, those will be empty.

Guest Access

3 floors but you don't need to go up to the third floor if you aren't using that space.

Notes

We have a washer and dryer in the unfinished basement. You have to go down some steps to get there. Also, we don't have any back lawn or garden but there are plenty of parks nearby, or you can just sit on the front steps and watch people go by.

Features


Washer
Washer
Dishwasher
Dishwasher
Clothes dryer
Clothes dryer
Oven
Oven
Microwave
Microwave
Coffee machine
Coffee machine
Fridge
Fridge
Iron
Iron
Hair dryer
Hair dryer
Heating
Heating
Air conditioning
Air conditioning
TV
TV
WiFi
WiFi
Bathtub
Bathtub
Smoke alarms
Smoke alarms

House Rules

    Suitable for infants under 2
    Suitable for children ages 2-12
    Pets not allowed
    No smoking

Dates of Availability

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Neighbourhood

Montclair is a great little town. There are many restaurants, movie theatres, an art museum a live music venue (The Wellmont theatre), parks, summer activities such as fairs and concerts, classes in art, yoga, dance, summer camps for children. People are friendly and diverse. It's only a short (25 minute) ride from Newark Airport. The last time I took an Uber from the airport it was about $50, there is a bus as well if you are adventurous and want to save money. It's a great location because you can alternate trips into the busy city with relaxing times in and around our home. You can also drive to the NJ beaches, the closest one is about an hour away, you can take the kids to several water and amusement parks and also explore some nice villages around New York State and New Jersey for restaurants, nature and antique or craft shopping. You can take the train to other places such as Philadelphia or Washington D.C, or if you decide to rent a car you can drive there fairly easily. We have hosted 9 exchange families/couples and they have all loved Montclair. In fact, Montclair is a very sought after New Jersey suburb of NYC and many people are trying to move here for the quality of life with proximity to New York City.t. Many activities for children in the town, including summer camps in the local schools for children to make friends and practice English and for those who want real immersion experience.I can help you make arrangements for anything you are interested in! I traveled to Europe often with my young children and often put them into summer classes so they could meet friends and learn the language and this is very possible here in Montclair . One of the best things about my home is that you really can walk everywhere, we have a Quick Check (convenience store) on the corner, a pizza place, Indian restaurant, a great bagel shop, a Whole Foods is about 15 minutes walk away, downtown Montclair with a ton of restaurants is about 15 to 20 minutes walk away.

Getting to my home

Newark airport is 25 minutes away by taxi or Uber. Last time I used Uber in January 2025 it cost about $60 each way. There is a bus though, with one easy change, you can also take, it costs about $2.50.

Nearest airport

Newark airport

Getting Around

You can walk everywhere, or easy Uber, Home is in great location with easy access to NYC (35 minute direct train-it's a 15-20 minute walk to train, please note it's direct only from Monday through Friday). On the weekends there is a non direct train that takes only a few minutes longer but the station for this is further from the house, Bay Street and it is at least a 30 minute walk or 5 minute Uber ride,. You can also drive to New York City, it's a 12 mile drive, please note this takes a long time though if there is traffic and you would have to put your car in a parking lot most likely as street parking would be difficult as in most big cities. Also there is now congestion pricing to drive into certain areas of the city. The train is best option and there are discounts for multiple rides, please see NJ Transit website and add Watchung Avenue, or Walnut Street, Montclair, to Penn Station, NYC for details.

Map of Approximate Location

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Feedback

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Debra

We are a family of four with many prior exchanges. Debra is a retired teacher who used to exchange through the very first exchange organization that existed before the internet! We had to mail our requests and photos! Tim is a jazz musician. Our girls are now grown and live elsewhere. Usually, it will just be me, Debra, traveling. As a new member I don't have any globes yet so I suppose the first exchange will need to be reciprocal in some fashion
Travelling group
LGBTQ+ Friendly Retired
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Desired Destinations

Open to any destination
Can travel at any time