UMH, YES Skyline Champion, Palm Harbor, Three Stone, Advantage Homes Among 2019 Winners
The 2019 MHI Congress & Expo in New Orleans is officially underway with more than 1,400 registered manufactured housing professionals in attendance.
During Monday’s pre-event programming, a pair of land-lease communities won awards for Excellence in Manufactured Housing, presented at the National Communities Council spring meeting.
UMH Properties – Eastern Region Land-Lease Community of the Year
UMH Properties, which owns and operates communities in eight states, won for land-lease community of the year in the eastern region. The award-winning community is Memphis Blues, a new gated community developed in 2017. Memphis Blues is a first-of-its-kind community, featuring all rental homes. And it sits just minutes away from the heart of Memphis.
Each home in Memphis Blues has an open floor plan, central air, dishwasher, stove, and refrigerator. In addition, the homes include personal patios, sheds, landscaped yards, and two-car driveways.
Community amenities feature a basketball court, dog park, business center, and outdoor pavilion. Memphis Blues is 100 percent occupied with 39 homesites. Two more phases of expansion will add another 97 homesites.
The award was received by Sam Landy, president and CEO of UMH Properties, which last year celebrated its 50th anniversary.
UMH Properties also won the Excellence in Manufactured Housing Award for Interior Design. The award was accepted by UMH Director of Pubilc Relations Kristi McGovern and Director of Marketing Abby Goldberg.
Yes! Communities – Western Region Land-Lease Community of the Year
Yes! Communities, a nation-wide community owner and operator, won the Land-Lease Community of the Year for the Western Region. The award-winning community Chalet City, an all-ages community in Crowley, Texas.
Chalet City sits on 40 acres, and in 2018 received more than $200,000 in community improvements. Its amenities include a swimming pool, soccer field, basketball court, dog park, and a newly remodeled clubhouse.
Karen Hamilton, chief operating officer and David Whitworth, senior vice president of western operations accepted the award for YES! Communities.
Yes! Communities also won the Excellence in Manufactured Housing award for Community Operator of the Year, accepted by Hamilton and Steve Schaub, CEO of Yes!.
Excellence in Manufactured Housing Retailer of the Year Awards
Three Stone Homes and Advantage Homes earned the Retailer of the Year awards, for the east and west regions respectively. Three Stone is located in Rogersville, Mo. The retailer began operating in 2013, and has grown at an annual rate of 30 percent during that time.
“The vision of Three Stone Homes was to develop a retail sales center that would serve as a premier showplace for their home product lines,” MHI’s Rick Robinson said during the presentation. “They wanted to make sure customers saw that affordable homes could still be beautiful through the use of quality construction and functional design.”
Advantage Homes operates 11 locations in California from its headquarters in San Jose, Calif.
“Owners Todd and Cindy Su are building a national brand with core values of teamwork, a culture of employee happiness, a focus on customers and by prioritizing giving back to the community,” Robinsons said in his introduction for the Sus. “They host several events throughout the year including Easter egg hunts, back-to-school supplies giveaways and helping seniors in communities with yard work as part of their goal to make a positive difference in their community.
Manufacturers of the Year at MHI Congress & Expo in New Orleans
Clayton Homes won the Manufacturer of the Year award for a builder with three plants or more, and Adventure Homes won the award for Excellence in Manufactured Housing award for a builder with less than three plants.
Supplier of the Year for Excellence in Manufactured Housing
Datacomp and MHVillage won the 2019 MHI award for Supplier of the Year. Company Co-presidents Darren Krolewski and Michael Boers accepted the award.
“It’s a privilege to do what we do in the industry,” Krolewski said. “We appreciate your support, particularly with The MHInsider magazine through advertising and keeping connected with us to let us know what’s happening in the industry.”
National Lender and Floorplan Lender of the Year
21st Morgage won a pair of awards in the lending category, for floorplan lending and national lender of the year.
In 2018, 21st Mortgage registered record loan volume, originating more than $1.5 billion in manufactured home loans. At the end of last year, 21st was serving more than 181,000 customers with about $9.4 billion in new and used home loans.
Regional Lender of the Year for Excellence in Manufactured Housing
Cascade Financial Services, of Chandler, Ariz., won the annual award for Regional Lender of the Year. In 2018, Cascade expanded its chattel loan offerings and continued to strengthen land/home financing programs. A great deal of its growth comes from a commitment to technology that streamlines and improves the loan process, for the customer as well as the company’s originators and services.
Lender/Broker of the Year
Yale Realty and Capital Advisors won the award among lender/brokers. The company has been dedicated to preserving and expanding the manufactured housing industry since it entered the business 14 years ago. Yale’s primary focus is to see communities maintained and improved, creating viable places to live for many years to come.
“Relationships and meeting client needs are the heart of Yale’s business and have been the key to their growth and success,” MHI’s Robinson said during the presentation. “Prior to an owner thinking of sale, the Yale team engages with the owner in order to help maximize the community’s occupancy and the tenants’ experience in the community.”
