Idaho Springs STR Market Report for Independent Hosts

Thomas Garner
Aug 3
10 min read

Updated: 2 days ago

Idaho Springs sits 28 miles and about 35 minutes west of downtown Denver on I-70, which makes it an odd category of mountain town: close enough for a same-day guest to book on a whim, but genuinely mountain in character rather than a suburban stopover. Colorado's first gold strike happened here in 1859, and the town built its identity around that boom instead of losing it once the gold ran thin. Today roughly 1,782 people live in Idaho Springs year-round, and the short-term rental market layered on top of that small population is shaped by two forces that matter more than almost anything else for an investor: genuine proximity to a major metro airport and origin city, and a regulatory environment that caps supply in two separate, overlapping ways depending on where a property actually sits. This report walks through the current revenue and occupancy data, unpacks exactly how the permit caps work at the county and city level, and looks at who is managing these properties today.

Why Idaho Springs Is a Different Animal Than a Generic I-70 Mountain Town

Most Denver-adjacent mountain content lumps Idaho Springs in with a string of I-70 exits as though they're interchangeable. They aren't. Idaho Springs is the closest incorporated town on the corridor that still functions as a genuine destination rather than a drive-through: it has its own downtown historic district, its own gold-rush-era architecture, a geothermal hot springs resort, and direct access to the Mount Blue Sky Scenic Byway, one of the most-visited alpine drives in the country. Georgetown, about 13 miles further up I-70, shares Clear Creek County's regulatory environment but is a smaller, quieter historic district with a different guest mix. Denver itself is the demand engine for both. For a host or investor comparing exits off I-70, Idaho Springs is the pick that combines the shortest drive from Denver with a real, standalone tourism economy , not just pass-through traffic to Breckenridge or Vail.

The Numbers: Idaho Springs STR Market Snapshot

Current AirDNA data for Idaho Springs, reflecting the trailing twelve months into mid-2026, shows:. Today roughly 1,782 people live in Idaho Springs year-round, and the short-term rental market layered on top of that small population is shaped by two forces that matter more than almost anything else for an investor: genuine proximity to a major metro airport and origin city, and a regulatory environment that caps supply in two separate, overlapping ways depending on where a property actually sits.

254 active short-term rental listings
average annual revenue per listing
52% average occupancy
$286 average daily rate (ADR)
$151 RevPAR (revenue per available night, blending rate and occupancy)

Those top-line figures track closely with what earlier planning assumed for this cluster, which is itself an useful signal , this market hasn't been repriced dramatically in the last few months. But the year-over-year trend line underneath those numbers tells a more interesting story than the snapshot alone. Comparing June 2025 to June 2026, revenue per listing is up 2.2%, even as occupancy fell 9.1%, ADR slipped 0.4%, RevPAR dropped 7.8%, and the total number of active listings contracted about 7%.

Read together, that's a market where supply pulled back faster than demand did. Fewer listings are competing for a guest base that's shrinking more slowly than the host pool. For an operator already established in Idaho Springs, or one entering now with above-average execution, that combination , falling listing count, revenue holding roughly flat , is a more favorable setup than the headline occupancy dip suggests on its own. It's not a market riding a growth wave; it's a market quietly consolidating around hosts who can hold rate and manage occupancy through the shoulder seasons.

The Permit Cap Question: County Rules vs. City Rules

This is the part of the Idaho Springs story that generic mountain-town content gets wrong or skips entirely, and it's the single most important thing to understand before buying here:Clear Creek County's numeric permit cap does not apply inside Idaho Springs' town limits.The county and the city run two entirely separate licensing systems, and confusing them leads to bad assumptions about how much room is actually left in this market.

Clear Creek County's cap covers unincorporated land only.The county ordinance limits non-primary-residence STR permits to 4.5% of the total number of residences in the unincorporated county , outside any incorporated town. Against a base of 3,606 unincorporated residential units, that works out to 163 non-primary permits available for 2026. Primary-residence rentals are excluded from that cap and licensed separately. This is the regulatory scarcity story that also shapes neighboring Georgetown's market, and it's real, numeric, and citable , not a vague "the county is cracking down" claim.

Idaho Springs runs its own, separate, and considerably tighter system.Since an ordinance took effect on November 12, 2018, it has been unlawful to operate a short-term rental inside the City of Idaho Springs without a city-issued license, and the city caps the total number of licensed short-term rentals at any one time at just 15. Critically, the city's definition of a short-term rental is narrower than the county's: it's built around a primary residence (or a portion of one, such as an accessory unit or spare bedroom) rented to transient guests for stays under 30 days. Licenses are non-transferable , they don't convey with a sale of the property, and the city clerk's office administers new applications directly.

What that means in practice: a property physically inside Idaho Springs' incorporated limits is not competing for one of the county's 163 non-primary permits, and it is not exempt from regulation just because it sits outside the unincorporated cap. It's competing for one of 15 total city licenses, in a system built around owner-occupied or partially-owner-occupied properties rather than pure investment units. A property in unincorporated Clear Creek County near Idaho Springs , outside the town line but still commuting distance to the same attractions , falls under the county's larger, non-primary-residence-friendly 163-permit pool instead. The practical upshot is that most classic "buy a whole home, run it as a dedicated investment rental" plays in this cluster point toward unincorporated county parcels, not addresses inside the Idaho Springs city limits, where the license structure assumes an owner living on or near the property.

Who's Actually Managing These Properties

The property management landscape here is fragmented rather than institutional, which is typical of Colorado's smaller mountain markets outside the big resort names. There's no dominant national brand , no Vacasa, Avant Stay, or Evolve office anchoring the market the way you'd see in Breckenridge or Steamboat. The most visible regional operator is Mountain Haven LLC (Mountain Haven Property Management Services), based in nearby Evergreen, which manages residential and rental properties across a wide swath of the Front Range mountain corridor, including listings in both Idaho Springs and Georgetown alongside Evergreen, Golden, Conifer, Morrison, and several other communities. Mountain Haven functions more as a generalist regional property manager , its public-facing listings and tenant portal point toward standard long-term residential leasing rather than dedicated short-term vacation rental marketing , than as a dedicated short-term-rental specialist, which leaves real room for a host or a smaller operator focused specifically on STR revenue optimization to differentiate on service and pricing strategy. Beyond that, the listing pool is dominated by independent, self-managed hosts, which is consistent with a market defined by primary-residence-style licensing rather than large-scale investment portfolios.

What Draws Guests to Idaho Springs

The reason this market supports real occupancy despite its small size is that Idaho Springs has genuine, non-generic attractions that pull guests specifically to this town rather than to "somewhere on I-70.". This is the part of the Idaho Springs story that generic mountain-town content gets wrong or skips entirely, and it's the single most important thing to understand before buying here:Clear Creek County's numeric permit cap does not apply inside Idaho Springs' town limits.The county and the city run two entirely separate licensing systems, and confusing them leads to bad assumptions about how much room is actually left in this market.

TheArgo Gold Mine & Millanchors the town's mining-history identity , the mill and its tunnel, once the longest of its kind in the world, connected Idaho Springs to Central City during the boom years, and the site now runs public tours that tell that story directly.Indian Hot Springs(Indian Springs Resort) gives Idaho Springs something almost no other I-70 town this close to Denver has: a geothermal resort with natural mineral caves, an indoor mineral pool, and private soaking baths, which pulls a spa-and-wellness guest segment on top of the standard outdoor-recreation crowd.Clear Creekitself, running straight through town, is one of the more accessible whitewater rafting stretches near Denver, drawing a summer rafting and kayaking market. And Idaho Springs is the launch point for theMount Blue Sky Scenic Byway, renamed from Mount Evans in 2023 , a 28-mile climb to 14,130 feet that's the highest paved road in North America and one of the most photographed alpine drives in the state.

That combination , mining history, geothermal wellness, whitewater recreation, and access to the highest paved road in the country , gives Idaho Springs a guest base with several distinct reasons to book, not just one. That diversification is part of why occupancy held up better here than the raw YoY number might suggest on its own; different guest segments peak at different times of year.

What This Means for Investors

Idaho Springs is best understood as Denver's genuine mountain-town gateway rather than a generic exit off I-70. The market fundamentals , roughly $38K in average annual revenue on named-town occupancy pins as of 2026-07-31, with revenue holding flat while supply contracts , describe a market in quiet consolidation, not explosive growth. The regulatory picture is the more decisive factor for any specific property: know before you buy whether an address sits inside Idaho Springs' town limits, where the license structure caps at 15 and assumes an owner-occupied or partially-occupied property, or in unincorporated Clear Creek County, where the larger 163-permit non-primary pool applies. Georgetown, just up the highway, runs under that same county cap and offers an useful side-by-side comparison for anyone weighing both towns , that's covered in more detail in a separate market report for that town. And for the wider view of how Idaho Springs fits into demand originating from Denver itself, the metro's own short-term rental dynamics are the backdrop worth understanding before narrowing in on any single mountain exit.

This report was produced by the Crest & Cove Creative research team, which builds market-level short-term rental analysis for hosts and investors evaluating Colorado's Front Range mountain corridor.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many short-term rental listings are active in Idaho Springs, CO?

AirDNA data shows roughly 254 active short-term rental listings in Idaho Springs as of mid-2026, though that count is down about 7% from a year earlier as some hosts exited the market.

What's the average annual revenue for an Idaho Springs short-term rental?

Roughly $38K in average annual revenue per listing, up about 2.2% year-over-year even as occupancy softened 9.1% over the same period. That combination — flat-to-rising revenue while supply and occupancy both contract — describes a market in quiet consolidation rather than explosive growth.

Does Clear Creek County's 4.5% short-term rental permit cap apply inside Idaho Springs?

No. The county's cap — 4.5% of residential units, yielding 163 available non-primary permits for 2026 — applies only to unincorporated Clear Creek County. Properties inside Idaho Springs' incorporated town limits fall under the city's own separate ordinance instead, and confusing the two systems is a common mistake in this market.

How many short-term rental licenses does the City of Idaho Springs allow?

The city caps total licensed short-term rentals at 15 at any one time, under an ordinance in effect since November 12, 2018. Idaho Springs' definition is also narrower than the county's — it applies to primary residences or portions of them, not standalone investment properties.

Is there a property management company serving Idaho Springs short-term rentals?

Mountain Haven LLC, a regional property manager based in nearby Evergreen, manages properties across Idaho Springs, Georgetown, and several other Front Range mountain communities, but the market has no dominant national STR brand and is largely made up of independent, self-managed hosts.

What is Indian Hot Springs in Idaho Springs?

Indian Hot Springs, also known as Indian Springs Resort, is a geothermal resort in downtown Idaho Springs featuring natural mineral caves, an indoor mineral pool, private soaking baths, and spa services — a draw that gives the town a wellness-focused guest segment beyond typical outdoor recreation.

How far is Idaho Springs from Denver?

Idaho Springs is about 28 miles and roughly 35 minutes from downtown Denver via I-70, making it the closest incorporated mountain town with its own standalone tourism economy along that corridor rather than just pass-through traffic to Breckenridge or Vail.

What is the Mount Blue Sky Scenic Byway, and does it start in Idaho Springs?

The Mount Blue Sky Scenic Byway, renamed from Mount Evans in 2023, begins near Idaho Springs and climbs 28 miles to an elevation of 14,130 feet, making it the highest paved road in North America and one of the most photographed alpine drives in the state.

About the Authors

This report was produced by the Crest & Cove Creative research team, which builds market-level short-term rental analysis for hosts and investors evaluating Colorado's Front Range mountain corridor. Our reporting combines third-party STR performance data with direct review of county and municipal regulatory sources to keep permit and licensing details accurate as ordinances change. This report walks through the current revenue and occupancy data, unpacks exactly how the permit caps work at the county and city level, and looks at who is managing these properties today.

Sources

Work with Crest & Cove Creative

Idaho Springs sits 28 miles from Denver with its own permit rules — Clear Creek County's cap doesn't even apply inside town limits. Listings here still run the same generic I-70 mountain-town copy as every other canyon exit.

We build Idaho Springs listing copy around the town's real permit status and its shrinking-supply advantage, not a template written for someone else's canyon exit.

Reach out at crestcove.co or (256) 998-7502.