Ask the Yascone sisters how they got their names: Faith, Joy and Love and they’ll say with a laugh, “Mom grew up in the hippy era.” But it was Glenda Yascone’s forward thinking that suggested they all become Airbnb hosts. “My mother came up with the idea of us becoming Airbnb hosts in 2013 when we went to a beach and stayed at an Airbnb,” says Faith. “But I thought it wasn’t a good idea because we don’t have any beaches in Louisville. But my mother was 100 percent right!” So in 2014, they formed Yascone Enterprises and turned 11 properties into Airbnbs.
Real Estate Runs in the Family
Yascone sisters are fourth-generation real estate owners, thanks to their great-grandmother, Goldie Hyatt. “She built and owned more than half of Germantown and everybody rented from her,” boasts Love. Faith adds, “And she was a phenomenon in her own right because she was a Black woman who owned property without being married – she didn’t get married until she was 38 years old.”
And when Glenda left her husband, Goldie gave her granddaughter three houses to help support her and her three girls. “There was a small house for us to live in, and the other two houses were used for a daycare center,” notes Love. “And it was called Love, Joy and Faith Daycare after us.” “In fact, our names are incorporated into every part of our business. Some of our properties on Harlan Avenue are named for us – The House of Love, The House of Joy, the House of Faith,” adds Faith.
Over the decades, the Yascones continued to buy up properties and eventually turned 11 of them into Airbnbs. Faith notes, “We started out with three platforms to rent our houses: Home Away (which owned Vrbo at the time), FlipKey and Airbnb. What I love about Airbnb is that it is a peer-to-peer service where you can be a part of building a community, helping that community, and be a part of the community, all at the same time. And I think that is Airbnb’s greatest strength.”
She discloses, “But I feel like Vrbo (now owned by Expedia Group) is doing rental homes best because Airbnb has lost their humanity since being publicly traded and trying to please their investors.” That’s why Faith formed “Stay in Louisville” under Yascone Enterprises to cut out the middleman. “I want to give the power back to the actual people who are running the show (the homes),” she says.
Diversity of Properties and Guests
“We have property from rural Harlan County bungalows to Louisville Victorian mansions,” boasts Faith. She adds, “We’ve even had weddings and film shoots on our properties, especially the ones in Harlan. Our prices range from $139 a night to $795 a night standard day-to-day rentals. But priority dates, like the Kentucky Derby, make prices at least triple the highest rate!”
Faith continues, “We are known for creating the oasis type of properties. We feature ponds, pools, high-end amenities, and it’s all about location, location, location!” Love adds, “The most popular is a toss-up between our Victorian Oasis property in Old Louisville – which is always a part of the [Old Louisville Hidden Treasures] Garden Tour, The Majestic in Old Louisville and the Frankfort Avenue Coachhouse in the Butchertown/Clifty area.” She continues, “Old Louisville is literally four miles from Churchill Downs, the site of the Kentucky Derby.”
And their guests are just as diverse as their properties. “We have a very strong relationship with the LGBTQ+ community,” Faith declares. “In fact, one of our biggest accolades was that we were asked to hold a Kentucky Pride event at our Victorian Oasis property.” She continues, “We’ve had guests visit from Utah who have multiple wives and we treat them the same as anyone else, and we’ve had Hasidic Jews as guests, so we want all of our guests to feel that our properties are safe spaces for all races, cultures, religions, genders and sexual identities.”
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Faith says about 20 percent of their guests are African American and but the majority are women and gay men. “We also get lots of Koreans, Europeans and Australians,” Faith adds.
An Oasis for Foodies
“All of our Louisville properties are within walking distance of some of our top restaurants and bars,” exclaims Love. Which is perfect, considering the Yascones are foodies, like many of their guests. “We’re an oasis for foodies,” says Faith.
Love adds, “We frequent a lot of Louisville restaurants and we know a lot of chefs. So we have a list of our favorites that we share with guests from $ restaurants (cost rating) to $$$$ restaurants. We’re also part of the Kentucky Bourbon Trail.”
Love says many of Louisville’s chefs know them by name and attend their parties. “We send our guests to those restaurants that shine in Louisville – where the locals go – including the restaurants that we know supported the Breonna Taylor protests.”
Faith calls it their “Live Better Than a Local” lists of restaurants, attractions and nightlife, adding, “I will even join guests at a restaurant if they like, and I have cooked for guests – especially those who want to try Korean food. Faith learned to cook Korean food from her roommate while at Columbia College in Chicago, following in her sister Joy’s footsteps. After spending years working in television, she decided to take a break and spend time in Korea. It’s one of the reasons they have many Korean guests.
Working as a Team
Each of the Yascones brings a wealth of skills and talents to the team to provide amazing experiences for their guests. Mom Glenda is the interior designer and oasis creator and is known as “Glenda the Good…making the everyday magical.”
Faith is the COO, handling all their rental operations, with the concierge-like connections that provide the resources for her “Live Better Than a Local” listings for guests. Joy is director of partnerships and wellness with a background in film and holistic health. She’s also an author and writes a column for Louisville & Lexington Sophisticated Magazine. She helps to build sustainable relationships and holistic wellness retreats.
Finally, Love is director of philanthropy and her background in theater helps her create cultural events and benefits that give back to the community. It seems Glenda chose the perfect names for her daughters as they bring those names and emotions into their creation of excellent guest experiences.
“The best thing about working together is we know each other's strengths,” Love admits. “We also know when each of us is having an off moment and we’re able to compensate for each other. So sometimes our names are a challenge because we’re all human,” she laughs.
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And being human means sometimes the sisters don’t agree. For example, Love says she’d like to see Yascone Enterprises expand into owning hotels, but for now, Faith says, “We want to dive deeper into creating wonderful experiences for our guests.”
Visit their website for information about booking a rental property with Yascone Enterprises. For information on their upcoming events, Louisville history and tips on “living better than a local,” visit their Facebook page.
