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Home Community
Questions/Answers |
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Q: |
Do you
rent mobile homes? |
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A: |
No, we
do not rent homes. We only rent home sites (lots)
to owners who reside in their homes here. We do
offer a limited number of Lease-to-Purchase homes.
Click here to see home site and
Lease-to-Purchase home availability.
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Q: |
I am
considering the purchase of a manufactured home.
Can you provide information on what to look for? |
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A: |
The
decision to buy and live in a manufactured home is a
personal one that only you can make. There are
many sources of information, including current
manufactured home owners, friends, family, manufactured
housing organization web sites, dealerships, and more.
An excellent web site to visit is the one for the
Manufactured Housing Institute;
click here to view one of their pages that
may help answer many of your questions.
In addition, you
are welcome to visit our community to see actual homes
and sites if that will help with your decision.
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Q: |
Can you
recommend a dealership where I can purchase my home? |
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A: |
Our
experience with local new home sales dealerships has
been positive. Our policy is to not show
preference for one over another. Consult your
local telephone listings and advertisements for tips.
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Q: |
Can you
recommend a brand or style of mobile home for me to
purchase? |
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A: |
As
with many major purchases there are many things to
consider including cost, size, features, construction,
appearance, warranty, and more. All leading
manufacturers produce good quality homes. You should
visit several dealerships to learn more so you can
compare. Most leading manufacturers have very
helpful web sites that showcase their homes.
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Q: |
I would
like to purchase a manufactured home and locate it in
your community, but I have heard all these horror
stories about mobile homes being unable to survive
severe storms. Are these true? |
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A: |
In
general, No. Modern manufactured homes are built
to Federal and State construction codes that make them
more durable than many older (and even some newer)
site-built conventional homes. When properly
installed and anchored a modern manufactured home is a
very safe place to live. Most of the stories you hear
are about older mobile homes that were built prior to
the new construction standards. As a matter of
fact, with the Hurricanes that hit Florida in 2004, not
one newer manufactured home was destroyed.
Visit this page from the MHI for our
information source.
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Q: |
I have
heard that if I locate my new home at Morning Meadow
that I don't have to pay sales taxes on the purchase.
Is this true? |
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A: |
No,
and Yes. You can defer paying your sales
taxes, but you still owe them and must pay them at some
point in the future. It is possible in certain
cases for a home owner to defer payment of sales taxes
on new home purchases by filing paperwork through a
process called the "Act of Immobilization." This
process also enables you to file for Louisiana Homestead
Exemption tax relief. Your home dealer or the
Ouachita Parish Clerk of Courts can provide you with the
details. Note that Morning Meadow receives no
benefit from this situation, other than making it
more convenient for you to reside here. Upon
request, once you have chosen us for your new home site,
we will provide you with a legal plot plan description
necessary to complete your filing action.
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Q: |
I've
decided that I want to move to Morning Meadow.
What do I do next? |
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A: |
Contact us to arrange for a meeting and
interview. We will explain our requirements for
residency and give you the grand tour.
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Q: |
What is the term of your
Rental Agreement? |
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A: |
We rent from month to
month, paid in advance.
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Q: |
How much is the lot
rent? |
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A: |
It
varies according to the lot location and size. See our
Interactive Facilities Map
to see available sites and prices.
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Q: |
What is included with
the lot rent? |
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A: |
Visit
our
Amenities page for the complete list.
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Q: |
Who pays
for the
utilities? |
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A: |
Each
Home Owner pays them as in any subdivision.
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Q: |
When is my rent due? |
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A: |
On
the 1st of every calendar month.
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Q: |
Who pays the utility
deposits? |
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A: |
The
Home Owner.
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Q: |
Do you require a
deposit? |
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A: |
No.
We require one month's rent paid in advance.
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Q: |
Do you allow pets? |
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A: |
Small inside pets are allowed. When outside, they must
be leashed and attended by the owner. Owners must clean
up after their pets.
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Q: |
Do you allow fences for
dogs or “Doggie Doors”? |
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A: |
No.
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Q: |
Do you provide lawn
care? |
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A: |
Yes,
for an extra fee. There are numerous third party
services available too.
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Q: |
May I care for my own
lawn? |
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A: |
Yes.
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Q: |
May I
plant flowers or shrubs? |
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A: |
Yes,
we encourage you to do so. But, please be careful
digging because the underground electrical
feed to your home, water faucet
pipes, cable, and telephone wires may be present.
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Q: |
Do you allow decks,
porches, or ramps? |
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A: |
Yes.
They are the responsibility of the Home Owner and
standards do apply.
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Q: |
Do you allow a cover
over my porch or car parking area? |
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A: |
Yes.
Minimum standards apply.
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Q: |
Who connects the
utilities? |
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A: |
Water. Contact Great Ouachita Water Company to
establish an account for water and sewer service.. Morning Meadow personnel will see that
the service is connected to your home and that you have
two outside faucets. No charge!
Sewer. Morning Meadow will use the material
that comes with your home and provide the personnel and
other materials to connect to the outlets, (up to five
), that exit your home and tie them into the sewer
system. No charge! (We will not revise nor repair the
piping that is part of your home.)
Electrical. A Building Permit is required, the
Home Owner’s responsibility, before power can be turned
on; contact Entergy to establish an account The Home Owner is responsible for having the
electrical supply connected from Morning Meadow’s
termination point to the panel inside the home. Minimum
standards and specifications do apply. Morning Meadow’s
termination points are as follows:
Telephone. By BellSouth (now AT&T) personnel.
Cable. By Comcast personnel.
Satellite. By respective satellite service
provider personnel.
Natural Gas. Gas is available to some lots.
Where available, Morning Meadow will pipe gas to home,
furnish a cut off valve, but will not connect gas to
home. Home Owner must arrange for someone to connect gas
to home.
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Q: |
Who do I
call for maintenance issues, such as a stopped-up drain? |
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A: |
You
are responsible for all home maintenance. You
should contact a licensed service provider for the
problem area, in this
case, a plumber. Note, however, that if your
service person identifies the cause of the problem is in
Morning Meadow's domain (e.g., underground sewer or
water pipes, or outside main electricity panels), you
should notify us immediately before attempting repairs.
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Q: |
Can I sell my home if I
need/want to? |
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A: |
Yes.
If home is to be moved, Morning Meadow Management must
be notified. If purchaser wants to reside
in home in Morning Meadow, they must go through the
interview and approval process as new residents
before taking occupancy.
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Q: |
Can I rent my home if I
have to relocate? |
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A: |
No.
We do not allow third party rentals.
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Q: |
Can I do a Lease
Purchase on my home? |
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A: |
Possibly. Morning Meadow management must be informed of
the terms and circumstances and agree. To avoid
any misunderstandings, you must get our approval in
advance of any such actions.
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Q: |
I have a
camper trailer. Can I park it at my home in
Morning Meadow? |
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A: |
No, we
do not permit Motor Homes or Travel Trailers.
You must make other arrangements for parking and
storage.
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Q: |
I have a
bass boat. Can I park it at my home in Morning
Meadow? |
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Q: |
Yes,
we allow small recreational and sporting boats, and
small utility trailers.
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A: |
I am a professional
truck driver and drive an 18-wheeler; Can I park my
truck cab at my home? |
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A: |
Sorry, we do not allow
oversized or unsightly vehicles to be parked at our
Community home sites.
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A: |
I am having a birthday party for my
daughter, and I will have several visitors. Where
can they park? |
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A: |
They can park in your driveway and on
your lawn. They can also temporarily park on the
grass in nearby common areas. Overflow parking is
available at the Pavilion at the entrance. You may
also ask permission from your neighbors. Do not
allow your visitors to park on the street.
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A: |
Where can I pay my rent? |
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A: |
At
the office, to the owners, use the Drop Box, or mail it.
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Q: |
Do you accept
credit/debit cards? |
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A: |
Yes.
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Q: |
Do I get a discount on a
Morning Meadow Self-Storage Unit if I rent one? |
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A: |
Yes. A ten percent
discount is available, but only for the resident’s
personal use.
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Q: |
What is
your policy regarding outside visitors? |
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A: |
We are
a private community. Each home owner is
responsible for the conduct of their visitors.
This means you should insure that your visitors don't
park on the street, that they don't create disturbances
or inconvenience your neighbors, etc.
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Q: |
What is your policy
concerning guests? |
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A: |
We
refer to guests as individuals who will temporarily stay
with you at your home and have not been listed on your
Residency Application. In
your application you state who will be the residents.
When your application is approved, those individuals
listed in it are the residents. Any other person
staying at your home is a guest and falls under the
Guest Policy.
The
Guest Policy states that guests may stay up to 36 hours
without Morning Meadow Management being notified and
approving the stay. If a longer visit is desired we
usually agree. However, there are circumstances under
which we may not agree to a prolonged visit.
To
sum up our policy concerning residents and guests: WE
HAVE THE RESPONSIBILITY AND RIGHT TO KNOW WHO IS STAYING
IN OUR COMMUNITY. Our policy is in compliance with both
Federal and Louisiana Fair Housing Laws.
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Q: |
What is your policy on
door-to-door sales? |
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A: |
We
have a no solicitation policy. Exceptions are
granted in certain cases where a benefit is perceived
for our community and the surrounding area. For
example, children of our residents may sell
raffle tickets, Girl Scout Cookies, or other
fund-raising items for the benefit of local schools,
bands, troops, etc.
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Self-Storage
Questions/Answers |
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Q: |
When is
my unit rent due? |
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A: |
Normally on the first day of each month.
on the same day of the month. The exception may be
if when you rented your unit you paid a full month's
rent instead the prorated amount to the end of the
rental month. In this exception condition, your
rent comes due every month on the day corresponding to
the day after your original rental date.
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Q: |
Where can I pay my rent? |
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A: |
At
the office, to the owners, use the Drop Box, or mail it.
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Q: |
Do you accept
credit/debit cards? |
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A: |
Not
presently. We accept cash, money orders, and
checks (for accounts in good standing).
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Q: |
Do you rent climate-controlled units? |
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A: |
Not presently.
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Q: |
Can I purchase insurance
on my unit contents from you? |
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A: |
No. However, you should be aware
that by Louisiana State Law we are not responsible for
your unit contents ... you are. You must make your
own arrangements to insure the contents of your unit
against damage, loss, fire, theft, etc. It is
possible that you existing homeowner or business
insurance covers your contents; you should check with
your agent for details.
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Q: |
I have heard stories of
other storage facilities flooding. Do I need to be
concerned with you? |
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A: |
No one can predict future acts
of God. Our facility is professionally engineered
to be well-drained, and we have never had a flooding
problem.
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Q: |
Do you provide pest
control? |
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A: |
Yes. We have a
regimen designed to protect against insects and
varmints. We regularly treat the outside
areas of the facility, and treat each unit when it is
vacated. Note that we do not have keys or access
to locked occupied units, so we cannot treat inside your
unit on a regular basic. If you are a long-term
renter, we recommend that you
contact us to schedule an appointment when you can
unlock your unit so we can treat it to prevent future
problems.
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Q: |
I am planning to vacate
my unit; what do I do? |
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A: |
You must notify us of your planned
vacate date. Upon removing your contents and
cleaning out your unit, you should leave the door(s)
unlocked. Then notify us that you are out.
Take the locks with you since they are yours to keep.
If you leave the doors locked, we will not consider the
unit vacant and you will be responsible for its
continued rental.
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Q: |
There are
two locks on my unit door, and I can't get in to it.
What does this mean? |
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A: |
Our
records indicate that your rent is overdue. You
must pay your rent and any other outstanding charges in
full before you will be permitted access to your unit
again.
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Q: |
I wish to
use my own lock to secure my unit. Is that OK? |
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A: |
Yes,
but place only one lock on each door. The second
space for a lock is reserved for our use.
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Q: |
I have
misplaced the keys to my lock. How can I get in to
my unit? |
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A: |
You
must contact us to arrange
for us to remove your lock, and you must present us with
a Photo ID to verify that you are the Legal Tenant. There is a small charge for the
removal service, and you must
furnish or purchase from us a replacement lock.
Special tools are required to remove the lock, so DO NOT
ATTEMPT TO REMOVE IT yourself; if you damage the door or
hasp attempting to remove the lock you will be
responsible for repair costs and replacement parts.
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Q: |
Do you
send monthly statements? |
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A: |
No.
It is your responsibility to remember the amount and
timing of your rental fees.
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Q: |
I need to
get in to my unit, but the facility gates are locked.
What can I do? |
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A: |
Make
plans to come back during normal business hours (7:00 AM
- 8:00 PM daily). If you have a valid emergency,
you may attempt to contact us
for access. We cannot assure you that we will be
available to help.
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Q: |
My
girlfriend and I shared her storage unit. We
recently broke up and I need to get my stuff, but she
won't unlock the unit for me. How do I get in? |
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A: |
You
don't. By State Law, unless your name is listed as a
Legal Tenant on
the rental agreement we cannot remove the lock without
the Legal Tenant's permission.
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Q: |
... But
I'm the one who paid the rent? |
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A: |
It
doesn't matter; you are not a legal tenant and we can't
open the unit for you.
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Q: |
...
Well, what do I do? |
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A: |
How
about talking to her nicely, and have her unlock her
unit for you.
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Q: |
...I
have talked to her, but she is out of town for 2 weeks.
Can't she just call you? |
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A: |
Her calling
us is not legally sufficient. In
this case you should contact us,
and we will explain the legal process that you and she
must go through to gain unit access by you.
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Q: |
Is the
dialog above true? |
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A: |
Situations similar to this happen quite often.
This is why it is important that all legal tenants
and co-tenants must sign the original rental agreement
when you rent the unit, or, when you add/remove tenants
later on after the unit has been rented.
Please remember, the State Law and our policy of
adhering to it are intended to protect you.
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General and Miscellaneous
Questions/Answers |
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Q: |
Why don't
you have questions here? |
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A: |
We
couldn't think of any more! If you have a
question/answer that you think would be helpful and of
interest to others please send it to us so we can
include it in a future update to this site.
Click here to send us an email with your question.
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