Living the Island Life
Written by Doug Goodnough
Ben and Keren Casciani Ten Haaf, ’04, ’04, are living out their personal version of Fantasy Island.
As co-owners of Lizzie Lu’s Island Retreat, they operate and manage nearly 30 vacation home rental properties on Anna Maria Island, a luxurious locale on Florida’s Gulf Coast near Bradenton, Florida. But the reality is, the work is challenging and the hours long to maintain and operate a business that is focused on providing their clients with the ultimate vacation experience.
Somehow, they make it all work, as well as raising their five children, ranging in age from 3 to 11, on the island.
Ben runs point for the business. He manages the day-to-day operations from their unassuming headquarters, which is a former funeral home located in Holmes Beach, Florida. Converted into offices, storage, and a makeshift laundromat that can handle up to 100 pounds of laundry every 40 minutes, Ben said it’s all about having a good system.
“You make mistakes,” Ben said when asked about how Lizzie Lu’s system was created. “Lots of them. And you waste time. We outsource as much as we can.”
There is a place for bedding. And for tableware. Every square inch of their storage facility is carefully mapped out and labeled. On the front end, Lizzie Lu has a state-of-the-art online reservation and communication system that guides renters through the entire process. Lizzie Lu texts renters information like their reservation, door code, and items in the house. On the back end, staff can let Ben know of any issues with the houses via an alert system.
He said his family has a history on the island. His grandmother first moved down to Anna Maria in the 1980s, then his parents relocated from their Grand Rapids, Michigan-area residence to the island nearly 20 years ago. Much of their family now lives on or near the island.
“We were familiar with the area,” Ben said. “It all started because we were going to buy our first rental. We were going to buy it for us, to rent out, so we had a house (on the island) in the future. Then we ended up buying seven duplexes and moving here.”
That occurred in 2012, when Ben and Keren decided to leave their public accounting firm in Toledo, Ohio (where they reconnected after graduation and eventually married) and live full time on the island. They now reside just a few blocks from Lizzie Lu, meaning that Ben is just minutes away in case something comes up with one of the properties.
Most of the rental homes are two bedrooms, but there are some four-bedroom homes that sleep up to 10 people. Rentals are normally by the week, sometimes by the month or longer. Ben said the majority of Lizzie Lu’s clients are repeat customers, and demand is high.
“We have people who have been trying to get into our houses for three or four years, and we still can’t get them in,” he said. “We just have no room.”
Although they spend very little on marketing, Keren said it’s important to get the word out about their business. With Ben focused on the operations side, Keren handles some of the bookwork as well as directing a newsletter that helps keep their clients informed. She still writes some of the newsletter articles and has a marketing firm assist with the rest to help Lizzie Lu remain competitive in the hectic world of online marketing and search.
“If there is a downturn, we want our business to be top-notch,” said Keren, who also is a Realtor.
And top-notch is what the Ten Haafs want for their Lizzie Lu brand—“clean, consistent quality inside the homes every time,” according to Ben.
For example, one of their larger rentals, an impressive four-bedroom home called Coconut Ranch, has décor personally curated by Ben and his staff. They hand-picked nearly every detail of the house, from the kitchen cabinets to the custom bathroom fixtures to how the furniture is displayed. That is how they approach each and every one of their rental homes.
“It’s built for someone to live there,” Ben said. “It’s got nice quality stuff, and if you walk into that kitchen, you should see the same stuff in the next house, because it’s all coming from the same place. It’s standardized.”
Saturdays are checkout days, and Ben and his staff have to turn over up to 20 properties on that day each week. The day begins around 5 a.m. when they load a 16-foot trailer with clean bedding, towels, and other needed items to deliver to the homes. Once the clients check out, it takes up to 2 ½ hours to “turn over” the home for the next renter. That process includes stripping the beds, cleaning grills, washing out chairs, and vacuuming floors. Two people clean and two people inspect each home to make sure the job is done right.
Despite the hectic schedule, the Ten Haafs said island life is good. Family is all around, and often their children stop into the business to hang around their dad. And the ultra-modern fleet of Lizzie Lu electric golf carts can get the Ten Haafs easily around town.
Several Hillsdale classmates have rented from Lizzie Lu, and Ben and Keren said they are proud Hillsdale graduates.
“I promote (Hillsdale) everywhere I go,” Keren said. “I loved going to Hillsdale. As much as I wanted to study business, I also wanted the liberal arts side of things. I honestly think that was the most important part of my education.”
Doug Goodnough, ’90, is Hillsdale’s director of Alumni Marketing. He enjoys connecting with fellow alumni in new and wonderful ways.
Published in January 2023