Current economic conditions may have put some homebuyers in a stand still mode, but Harold Allen works daily to help put families in a home of their own. That work has earned the manufactured home dealer a coveted spot among dealers across the region.

Last month, Allen’s dealership was named the No. 1 dealer in America for the fifth straight year for Platinum Homes sales. Sales at the Atmore lot for the manufacturer were hovering around the $2 million mark.

“This is an honor,” Allen said. “We think we’re in the Top 3 dealers in this trade area. Being No. 1 is good for us, but it’s good for the customer, too.”

Allen said the honor of being the top seller of Platinum homes allows him to negotiate better prices with the manufacturer.

“When you’re No. 1 with the manufacturer you can get a better price on the homes,” Allen said. “We can then pass that savings along to the customer down the road.”

Having working in the manufactured housing business since 1968, Allen has sold millions of dollars worth of homes over the years. The Harold Allen lot has been in operation since 1972 creating a business known throughout the region.

“I started here in May 1972,” Allen said. “By the first of June I had sold nine mobile homes. Things just got to rolling and I kept on working and kept selling. This business has been a magnet that has drawn people into Atmore for years.”

For years, Allen has been known as the man who knows mobile homes/manufactured homes. His advertising slogan, “Friends, you know Harold Allen and Harold Allen knows mobile homes,” has been his trademark phrase for as long as he’s been doing business.

Although Allen’s slogan has won him loyal customers, he said hard work has landed him in the position he enjoys today.

“If you work hard and have good customers, you can make anything happen,” Allen said. “I want to thank all the people in the surrounding trade area for making us a good success. This could not have happened without good customers.”

Although Allen no longer puts in endless hours at the North Main Street lot, he can be seen nearly every day checking in on the business.

“I don’t work as much as I used to,” Allen said. “My son, Mark, runs the day-to-day operations and I trust him with that. But, there’s nothing I like better than coming here and helping sell a house.”

Allen said his biggest year of sales came in 1996 when his business sold an estimated $20 million worth of homes.

“That doesn’t happen every day,” Allen said. “With the economy the way it is, financing is a little harder to secure than it used to be. We do everything we can to help people find financing for their home.”

Finding that financing has put countless families in homes through the years helping secure the recent honor for Allen.

A presentation ceremony was held to commemorate the achievement earned by Allen’s dealership last month in Tunica, Miss.

Allen gave credit to the employees who keep the sales alive and the business running every day. Sales staff at the Atmore lot include Mark Allen, Vicky Black, Deidra Kelly, Eddie Cole and Tocarra Cole.

On hand for the presentation Platinum Homes officials Carl McCulley, Mike McGuire, Vice President of Manufacturing Rick Brugee and Joe Clark.

To learn more about Harold Allen Homes, visit their Web site at www.haroldallenhomeshow.com. To learn more about Platinum Homes visit www.myplatinumhome.net.