The A Stay Above The Rest Team & Company Story
We’re known for providing best in class vacation rental options and investment services. Now, get to know the company story and the A Stay Above The Rest team behind the brand.
How It All Got Started…
The A Stay Above The Rest Team & Company Story
What started as more of a test, has grown into what it is today! Janis, Bill, and Katie talked for years about purchasing and managing a short term rental property… where they would buy, how they would furnish it, how they would offer excellent service, and how they would make it profitable. At the time, the market was filled with old and run down properties… It seemed like the only way to get a nice stay was to rent a million dollar home. What if you didn’t need 4+ bedrooms? What if you only wanted to get away for a couple of nights?
After much debate of where to buy first, (and almost putting in an offer in a completely different area) the family fell in love with the historic town of Galveston, Texas… And the data told them that their gut instincts were right! Janis and Bill took the plunge and purchased their first short term vacation rental, which was meant to be an investment towards their retirement. Guests were immediately enchanted by the promise and delivery of luxury accommodations. The condo along with its services became a hit!
We Started to Grow… QUICKLY!
Though the intent was to start slow. And maybe purchase another small condo over time. The trio quickly realized that they had stumbled upon their calling. 6 months in, the condo was booking and generating so much revenue that they had to buy a second property. Just to keep up with the booking demand! At the same time, a dear family friend, seeing how well they were doing decided she wanted to purchase a vacation rental too! … and so it began!
The word quickly got out that Janis, Bill and Katie were on to something special. The newly formed A Stay Above the Rest team realized that the industry was becoming stale. Utilizing the opportunity to set the market by storm, they facilitated the renovation of all 3 properties. Initiating the standard of accommodations that is the A Stay Above The Rest trademark today. And within a year, all 3 properties were alive and booming. So much so that the company grew to 15 properties!!
With more than 20 thriving properties, the trio has more than proven that their unique recipe for success really works!
The A Stay Above The Rest Team Culture
Early on the A Stay Above The Rest team adopted a commitment to excellence in all that we do. After all, we are “A Stay Above The Rest”… a bold name with an even bolder mission. Offering guests and our partners the best in services, options and above all experiences.
No matter how large the company gets – our passion and promise to provide the best only continues to grow along with it!
A Stay Above The Rest offers vacation rental owners an alternative to the cookie-cutter approach to property management that plagues the industry. Refusing to ever lose sight of what sets the company apart from others. We continue to grow and raise the bar for guest expectations.
Meet The A Stay Above The Rest Team
Just as meticulously as we crafted our business principles – we only hire the best. With a diverse and unique skill set our small yet capable team empowers our company to truly offer our guests and partners an experience that is ‘Above The Rest’.
Janis Higgins- Chief Executive Officer and Co-Founder
Janis, our “magic maker”, is a lover of life and all things to make people happy! She strives on creating amazing places and experiences for our guests while cultivating a great atmosphere for our employees. She is our in-house realtor for certain locations and heads up the complete remodel and design/furnishing of our beautiful properties. She has 3 grown children and a boy still at home (“A-man” whom you will see in many of our social media posts)! She lives in Austin, TX and enjoys, when she isn’t working, her days on the boat on Lake Travis, any reason to travel and her family!
Katie Tackett- Chief Revenue Officer and Co-Founder
Katie is passionate about generating the most revenue as possible for our owners! She oversees the marketing of the business and our properties on the various revenue streams, acquisitions of new properties and owner relations. Katie and her husband live in Austin, TX and have a little girl, “G-baby” in our social media posts, and an ornery little boy who still needs a nickname! She enjoys travel and lots of it, family time, her horses, and DIY projects… with power tools!
Bill Higgins- President, Chief Financial Officer and Co-Founder
Bill works a full time job outside of A Stay Above The Rest, but he keeps us on track, lets us know what we are doing well and what we need to improve on. He also makes sure that all of our bills are paid and we can afford to have Torchy’s Tacos catered for the occasional splurge on office lunches! Bill enjoys crunching numbers, his family, fitness (including boxing) and boating around Lake Travis.
Lauren Torres – Manager
Lauren is the queen of getting things done! She is great at jumping in wherever is needed and is a huge reason as to why we are so successful. She started working full time for A Stay Above The Rest in July of 2017. Her and Janis work together to bring you the beautiful properties you see on our site through the remodels and design/ furnish phases. Lauren works hard at whatever she sets her mind to and we couldn’t be more grateful for her! She lives in Austin, TX along with her husband, 2 daughters and 2 adorable Boston Terriers. She enjoys fitness, travel and any excuse for family time! We also have to mention Big Brother… she keeps us in the loop of what all is going on!
Angela F – Guest Experience Lead
Greg H – Guest Experience Representative
Megan L – Guest Experience Representative
Brittany L – Guest Experience Representative
Sarah – Guest Experience Representative
