How Brian Egan Built a Profitable Short-Term Rental Empire—and Where the Industry is Headed Next

The Evolution of Short-Term Rentals in Denver and Beyond

Not many cities have seen short-term rentals surge quite like Denver. For property owners and managers here, the shifts in vacation rental strategy over the past 15 years have felt both personal and transformative. In 2026, as Denver remains a top market, understanding these trends—and the minds steering them—can make or break a healthy portfolio.

Brian Egan’s journey in this industry offers a real lesson in what it takes to build something lasting. As co-founder and CEO of Evolve, a hospitality brand rooted in Denver, Egan has guided more than 35,000 properties, generating over $5 billion in rental revenue. His insights go beyond press releases; they’re built on scaling trust and performance in a rapidly changing environment.

Finding Opportunity Where Others Saw Obstacles

Brian Egan didn’t start out selling lemonade as a kid or dreaming of startups. His path began in Silicon Valley, where a legal career led him straight into the fire of tech startups and venture capital. Quickly, he realized his true place wasn’t as counsel but as a builder and operator. The spark for Evolve came later, after his time at Exclusive Resorts—a luxury travel club based in Denver—helped him see how vacation rentals could work differently.

Back in 2011, Airbnb was still figuring itself out and HomeAway (now Vrbo) was little more than a digital classifieds site. Booking a vacation rental was often guesswork—outdated calendars, unpredictable price sheets, and slow communication were commonplace. Meanwhile, property managers and hands-on owners both faced a growing list of headaches as rentals inched toward the mainstream.

Egan and co-founder Adam Sherry saw this as their chance. They imagined a management platform that landed neatly between the do-it-all-yourself owner and costly local management models. The goal? Give owners control and flexibility, while making it easier to deliver a consistent, high-performance guest experience—without nickel-and-diming on local know-how or professional support. From day one, they bet on the idea that trust—and not just inventory—would separate winners from the crowd.

Pushing Through Missteps and Staying the Course

Growth rarely comes in a straight line. Egan is upfront about stumbling along the way. In the early years, finding individual owners (rather than just marketing to consumers) proved much harder than expected. The biggest mistake, Egan admits, was wavering in conviction during a period of slow growth. When they tried to onboard established property managers onto the platform—accepting non-exclusive partnerships that boosted unit count quickly—the results were shaky. Egan describes this phase as building width, not depth, and quickly “unwinding” the experiment to recommit to direct, exclusive owner relationships. Focusing exclusively on these partnerships, brick by brick, became the model for sustainable growth.

Multi-Channel Distribution: Bet Big, Bet Early

One of Evolve’s early decisions now seems obvious but was risky at the time: distribute listings across every major booking channel. While some property managers stuck to a single platform, Egan’s team set out to put their homes in front of as many guests as possible—from Airbnb and Booking.com to Vrbo, Expedia, and even Marriott Homes & Villas. By handling every aspect of distribution for owners through proprietary technology, Evolve created a service where owners could step back, relax, and simply get booking notifications and payouts—while still having control when it mattered (like setting minimum holiday rates).

This willingness to embrace technology and distribution variety, rather than treating it as a threat, helped build efficiency even as the category grew more complex. Evolve brought the same approach to revenue management, offering owners levers to participate when they wanted, but otherwise handling pricing optimization behind the scenes.

Why the Long Tail Persists—and What That Means for Denver Owners

Looking at the broader market, Egan observes an industry neatly split: professional managers and DIY owners maintain a stubbornly consistent ratio, even over a decade. It’s easy to assume that professional operators would eventually crowd out hobbyists, but the data says otherwise. In Denver and elsewhere, many owners thrive handling bookings, cleaning, and guest communication themselves—fuelled by passion and time. Yet Egan points out that most Evolve owners are in a different stage of life: juggling careers, raising families, and treating their rental as part-investment, part-lifestyle asset. For these folks, the hands-off approach doesn’t just sound appealing—it’s necessary.

On the flip side, local full-service managers can provide great value, but their costs remain high—between 35% and 45% of gross revenue—because running a truly local operation with boots on the ground, maintenance, and housekeeping isn’t cheap. Evolve’s hybrid model steps into the gap, maximizing owner control and earning power without the overhead.

Treading the Competition: Tools, Tech, and Owner Choice

The explosion of technology-targeting rental owners is impossible to miss. Dozens of platforms promise to handle everything—pricing, cleaning rotations, channel management—so long as the owner is ready to be hands-on. Egan is diplomatic, welcoming better tools as a win for the industry, but he doesn’t see this wave upending the fundamental split. There’s a reason high-end saws haven’t turned every homeowner into a woodworker: not everyone wants the day-to-day grind.

For those seeking passive income in a place like Denver—where seasonal demand, snow removal, and city regulations all add unique layers—partnering with an organization handling both tech and operations still resonates. Evolve’s philosophy: let the owner decide how hands-on they want to be, and meet them with the right set of support and tools.

The Elusive International Expansion—and Lessons Learned

Denver may serve as Evolve’s headquarters, but ambitions naturally run global. Egan’s vision is clear: the hybrid management model can work anywhere, but not at the expense of focus in a still-expanding US market. Unlike full-service operators that have struggled to build economies of scale overseas, Evolve’s partnership-based, tech-centric approach reduces the need for a huge payroll of cleaners or maintenance staff. Growth abroad, Egan says, will happen once the US opportunity plateaus—and possibly by partnering or acquiring local businesses rather than reinventing from scratch.

Technology’s Real Role: Efficiency Without Losing the Human Factor

In an industry obsessed with automation, Egan is quick to clarify: great tech doesn’t replace people, it empowers them. Evolve has invested heavily in updating its tech stack to improve both owner and guest experience, especially as artificial intelligence becomes mainstream. AI can handle pricing optimization and streamline support, freeing up staff to deliver standout service when it counts—like navigating a surprise maintenance call after a Denver snowstorm, or resolving a guest’s urgent needs at midnight.

His take rings true for any property management pro: owners don’t want to wait on hold for password resets, nor do support teams want to field repetitive queries all day. By automating where it makes sense and doubling down on human touch where it matters most, businesses can elevate both experience and profitability.

Capital Flows and Industry Consolidation: Opportunities and Cautions

In the US and worldwide, investment in short-term rental tech platforms has picked up again after a cooling period. Investors are chasing scale, both in property software (PMS, channel managers) and through acquisitions and private equity roll-ups on the operational side. Still, Egan points out that moving properties around via M&A doesn’t truly change supply. For owners weighing their options, quality of service, transparent fees, and proven performance will continue to matter most.

Egan emphasizes that a sustainable business—organic and profitable—matters more than growth-for-growth’s-sake. Owners in Denver and similar markets should be wary of hype and focus on steady results and local expertise.

The Road Ahead: Stability and Renewed Opportunity

The rollercoaster of the past several years—pandemic dislocation, record demand spikes, then normalization and margin pressures—has finally steadied. US markets in 2026 show solid revenue per property, even accounting for recent declines from the pandemic’s peak. While volatility can cloud judgment, the long-term picture is healthy and ripe for innovation.

AI stands to reshape guest discovery and owner management, but the fundamentals remain unchanged: delivering standout experiences and maximizing returns through careful strategy and reliable support. Egan expects a new real estate cycle will bring another wave of owners into the category once housing transactions pick up—and believes the industry, especially in growing hubs like Denver, is well positioned to thrive.

Building a winning rental business isn’t about doing it all solo or chasing every new platform. It’s about striking the right balance—leveraging technology where it matters, sticking to fundamentals, and keeping trust at the center.

For property owners who want to stay ahead in 2026, the lesson is clear: stay focused on what works, lean on local insights, and seek partners committed to your property’s long-term performance.