Welcome! It’s nice to meet you.
ABOUT MILE HIGH HOSTS
ABOUT US
Welcome to Mile High Hosts, your Denver Metro Short-Term Rental Alliance, where community and connection are at the heart of everything we do. As your neighbors and friends, we are dedicated to enriching the Denver Metro area, advocating for responsible short-term rental practices that enhance the quality of life and ensure a thriving future for all. We’re not just sharing our spaces; we’re fostering connections and enriching lives through a vibrant, inclusive community effort.
Our alliance comprises proud Denver residents, seasoned hosts, local business owners, and real estate experts, all united in our mission to create a dynamic and prosperous environment. Join us as we advocate for sustainable short-term rental practices, celebrate the spirit of Denver, and shape a future where everyone benefits. Together, we are making Denver a better place for residents and visitors alike, setting a standard for short-term rental communities nationwide.
NEW:
Memberships Now Available!
Vision: To ensure a thriving short-term rental community in the Denver Metro area that seamlessly blends into our neighborhoods and contributes to the economic success of our neighborhood business partners.
Mission: Our mission is to educate and advocate for the Denver Metro area host community with all stakeholders to guarantee a robust sharing economy for everyone and a world-class experience for our guests.
Values:
- Responsibility: We are dedicated neighbors and hosts, deeply committed to our community’s well-being.
- Economic Impact: We strive to make a substantial and positive impact on the local economy.
- Collaboration: We believe in sharing our knowledge and collaborating openly to enhance our community.
- Inclusivity: We are committed to fostering an inclusive environment, where diversity is celebrated and encouraged.
- Fairness: We advocate for equitable regulations supporting all types of short-term rentals.
What We Do
Advocacy & Regulatory support
We represent responsible short-term rentals in Denver with policymakers at the state, county, and local level, and we provide hosts and managers resources to advocate for yourselves. We also provide regular updates on the latest in local ordinance discussions and state laws, and we provide support tools to help you follow local rules, pay taxes, and more.
education & community
We create content and events for hosts and managers of all experience levels to professionalize and optimize your hosting. We also foster opportunities to grow your network. Whether you’re looking for a vendor or business partner or just want to connect with other hosts, the Mile High Hosts is your community.
BECOME A MEMBER
To access the full suite of all that Mile High Hosts has to offer, join us as a member.
Meet the board
Dana Lubner, President
As the board president of Mile High Hosts, Dana Lubner leads efforts to cultivate a vibrant and responsible short-term rental community in the Denver Metro area. Dana is also a founding member of CLARA, the Colorado Lodging and Resort Alliance, committed to elevating lodging standards throughout Colorado.
Additionally, Dana serves on the Advisory Board for Effortless Rental Group, a premier property management company specializing in short-term rentals in Colorado. Her role as Director of Community Development at Rent Responsibly sees her spearheading national initiatives that promote sustainable rental practices and community engagement.
With a deep commitment to the industry, Dana’s work significantly impacts both the local community and the broader short-term rental landscape, advocating for fair regulations and fostering economic and community well-being.
Sabrina Calnan, Vice President
Sabrina Calnan, a long-time Denver resident and founder of bnbExcellent, brings her former investment banker expertise to drive long-term success for Airbnb hosts. Her company specializes in listing and revenue optimization, employing strategies similar to those used in the airline and hotel industries to maximize revenue. Committed to responsible hosting and community advocacy, Sabrina actively promotes education and sustainable success, ensuring Denver continues to exemplify balanced short-term rental operations.
Chad Wise, Treasurer
I started my short term rental journey in 2016. From listing a private room in my home in Denver, to my first dedicated STR in Steamboat, to now operating over 100 properties in 6 markets, I’ve fully embraced the value STR brings to communities. After successfully fighting off onerous regulation in one of my markets, I joined the MHH board to help support STR in the Denver area. I live in the Sloan Lake neighborhood with my girlfriend if 6 years & 27lb mutt!
Brian Chaplin, Secretary
Brian joined the VRC team initially in the Fall of 2017 as an independent part-time Sales Executive focusing on Owner Acquisition, and establishing our Denver market. Now a full-time Sales and Business Development professional at VRC, Brian is focused on continued growth throughout the Front Range, establishing strategic relationships, and building out new targeted markets for VRC. Prior to joining VRC, Brian spent 15 years in the Financial Services serving in Enterprise Sales, Business Development, and Team Director roles. He’s worked for publicly traded Fortune 500 companies, and several private start-ups. He resides in Denver alongside his wife Jamie, and two sons Caden and Silas. Brian spends his free time trail running throughout the mountains surrounding Denver, fly fishing, golfing, and traveling. He’s also a graduate of Fort Lewis College’s school of Business.
Nathan Urquhart, Board Member
Born In Australia, but moved to Denver when I was just 4, the plan was to live in the States for a couple of years. Our family fell in love with Colorado and now been in the Denver area for most of my life, outside of some time back in Sydney in High School, College and more recently a move to Reno, NV for my Wife’s job.
My Wife and I are very active with our dog, Aussie. Daily walks, hikes, skiing, golfing, indoor beach volleyball, dog park visits, Denver Broncos season ticket holder. Always willing to drive in a camper van to get back to nature, or jump in a plane and head overseas to explore new places, catch an eclipse or a sporting event.
To support these choices, I have long believed in home ownership and the turning our largest expense into an asset to support lifestyle flexibility. I was a very early adopter of using Airbnb in 2014 and before a 3 month Europe backpack trip in 2016 I became a host. Since then I’ve purchased three properties for STR or MTR and two others, I co-manage with others.
With Mile High Hosts in Denver we continue to push for balanced regulation for the hosting community, while supporting our peers with through regular educational events and each year our marque event, The Good Neighbor Summit.
Andrea Henderson, Board Member
Andrea Henderson joined Mile High Hosts board of directors at the start of 2024. She brings her passion and experience in education, real estate, short term rental hosting and as Denver Airbnb Community Leader volunteer. Andrea loves connecting her community and educating hosts to practice responsibly and successfully. She is a Realtor in Colorado as her full time profession. She enjoys travel, playing tennis, reading and watching live music.
Gretchen Blaz, Board Member
Accidentally venturing into short term rentals on a doomed first date in 2015 led to a recognition of a love of providing hospitality and sharing Denver with friends yet to be discovered from around the world. My husband Jim helped me scale our operations and create a cleaning company to back our hosting services. In our tenth year, we are over 10,000 hosted stays as professional cohosts. We are considered “people managers” not property managers. Focusing very much on the guest experience, and prioritizing the safety and enjoyment of our neighbors in a way that keeps our spaces welcomed. For ten years we’ve done zero advertising, our clients coming from referral or word of mouth. We are proud of the service we provide to both our clients and our guests.
GET TO KNOW SHORT-TERM RENTALS IN DENVER METRO AREA
Short-term rentals are not Airbnb or a faceless corporation. Short-term rental hosts are faces you know: your family, your friends, the people next to you at the farmer’s market.
Short-Term Rental Operators
MISCONCEPTION: Short-term rentals are owned or managed by Airbnb, Vrbo, and other booking platforms.
MISCONCEPTION: Short-term rental owners are out-of-town investors or corporate developers.
REALITY: Airbnb, Vrbo, and other platforms solely connect guests to hosts. They do not own or manage any of the properties subject to local regulations. Short-term rentals in Denver are owned and managed by local community members. Regulations decided by city councils affect their livelihoods, not the platforms.
REALITY: The majority of short-term rental owners in Denver are locals renting their homes to make a side income. This helps them keep their homes, pay for their kids’ college education, save for or supplement their retirement, and cover other life expenses. Most owners earn enough to cover only part of their mortgage payments.
Shared Community Economic Benefit
MISCONCEPTION: Short-term rentals aren’t taxed, giving them an unfair advantage over hotels.
REALITY: Short-term rentals in Denver collect the same lodgers’ tax as local hotels. Hosts are also responsible for collecting state and local sales taxes.
MISCONCEPTION: Short-term rentals cause affordable housing problems.
REALITY: In Denver, whole-home short-term rentals make up a small fraction of all housing units. Affordable housing problems are primarily caused by a disparity between wages and real estate market factors. Short-term rentals help local homeowners supplement their mortgages, allowing them to keep their homes.
MISCONCEPTION: Short-term rentals do not contribute to the local tourism economy.
REALITY: Short-term rentals make it possible for more people to visit and spend money in Denver. Many travelers prefer short-term rentals for the space, amenities like kitchens, and economic options they provide. This disperses tourism dollars to local businesses across different neighborhoods.
MISCONCEPTION: Short-term rentals do not create or support local jobs.
REALITY: Short-term rentals rely on the services of local housekeepers, landscapers, maintenance technicians, pest control providers, property managers, and other property care specialists. Each new short-term rental creates several fractional jobs within the community.
Short-Term Rental Guests
MISCONCEPTION: Short-term rental guests destroy the fabric of neighborhoods.
REALITY: The average short-term rental guest in Denver is often a family or individual traveling for leisure or business. These guests typically respect the community and contribute to the local economy.
MISCONCEPTION: Short-term rental guests are noisier than residents.
REALITY: There is no evidence suggesting short-term rental guests are louder than long-term occupants. Many short-term rental guests are families or individuals seeking a quiet, comfortable stay.