Vacasa acquires Leelanau Vacation Rentals
Pictured here are Bob and Ranae Ihme
From staff reports
Vacasa, the largest rental company in North America, has purchased Leelanau Vacation Rentals in Glen Arbor from Ranae Ihme. The changeover will take place at the end of August.
Most of the local staff will stay on, and Ranae and Bob Ihme will continue to own and run Glen Arbor Outdoor and LVR Realty, which they have renamed Leelanau Vacation Realty. The Ihmes and Vacasa will operate out of the same building across the street from the Glen Arbor park.
“This was a pretty big deal and took years of thought,” said Ranae. “We’re sticking around and will very much continue to be at our storefront in downtown Glen Arbor, sharing the building with Vacasa.”
Ranae said Vacasa, which is based in Portland, Oregon, approached her five years ago about selling. She was reluctant at first, because their family’s three businesses—vacation rentals, outdoor maintenance, and real estate—tie well together. But she said Vacasa listened to her concerns and promised that her booming realty business would still be tied in with the vacation rentals. “Today’s renters are tomorrow’s buyers,” Ranae has often said.
Vacasa also impressed the Ihmes with the wages and health insurance benefits they offered Leelanau Vacation Rentals employees to entice them to stay on.
“They hit the mark for us and made it a no brainer,” said Ranae, who added that homeowners who rent through Leelanau Vacation Rentals will pay the same commission that she charged them.
Vacasa offers a much larger playing field. Ranae was on AirBnB and Vrbo, she said, but Vacasa is also on Expedia and other vacation sites. Plus, the multinational company has the technology to use “dynamic pricing”—an algorithm that guarantees the renter doesn’t pay the same weekly rate throughout the season. Instead, the price adjusts based on events and occupancy in the region.
“Our biggest thing was that they take care of the staff, and the staff will take care of them,” said Ranae, who added she’s excited about the larger audience pool Leelanau Vacation Realty can now court. “I’m so excited to focus on the real estate.”
Jess DeRuiter, Vacasa’s general manager in Michigan, offered the following statement about the company’s purchase of Leelanau Vacation Rentals:
“The success of Leelanau Vacation Rentals reflects the years of service the Ihme family has dedicated to the Glen Arbor and Leelanau communities, as well as their homeowners, and it’s a legacy that Vacasa is proud to continue. We’ve extended offers to all Leelanau Vacation Rentals staff and are committed to learning from the local team members, while also providing them with new career and growth opportunities within the company. Local operations are the heart of Vacasa, but our in-market teams are supported by centralized marketing and technology that is designed to drive better results for our homeowners and has helped to make Vacasa a national leader in vacation rentals.”
