Sorry, the address of the place is 237 Grove Street and not 27..

you're 2 blocks away from my old high school... that whole area is pretty nice, and has gotten even nicer in the past couple of years. theres alot of restaurants nearby within walking distance, and about a 5 min walk from the waterfront.

that area is pretty safe, not alot of crime so dont worry about anything like that. just make sure youre getting it from a reliable source, so you dont get scammed and lose alot of money

Thanks for your response Shadow. How do I know if the person is reliable? He's asking for around 20% of the rent upfront and has given me his telephone number in order to pay the money. Would I have any legal comeback if I turn up and find that the place doesn`t exist or something?

There seem to be an awful lot of vacation rentals on offer in NY/NJ and I was wondering myself whether some of them might be scams. With no contract/online confirmation, it does take a leap of faith to go for one of these rentals..

Any suggestions?

it all depends how you know this person. is it a friend of a friend? or did you find them through some website online (craigslist is a popular one in the states). quick google search shows this (granted, a thousand miles away, but it happens anywhere): www.10news.com/news/13962225/detail.html

craigslist has this quick guide to help fight against scams:

http://www.craigslist.org/about/scams.html

so, in short, i would be wary of rental places like this. jersey city isnt exactly the zenith of morality in civilization, you know =D