Dan McGowan

Dan McGowan wasn’t necessarily looking to uproot his family from Denver after enjoying their Rocky Mountain lifestyle for nearly 25 years.

He had traveled widely as a broker lead for JLL, completing projects in 47 out of 50 states. But, when McGowan’s South Florida counterpart Rob Barnes retired last year, he began to speak with other executives in the firm about the future of the region. 

It also helped that McGowan had become more familiar with the area after frequently traveling south to help a JLL client consolidate their offices from Fort Lauderdale to north of Downtown Miami and visiting his son, who attended the University of Miami.

“It was a mutual curiosity,” McGowan said. “A couple conversations happened, then a few more, and it kind of happened. I started to learn and love South Florida.”

This wasn’t McGowan’s first stint in the South. The New Jersey native was determined to leave the Northeast and attended the University of Alabama sight unseen. He worked 50 hours a week as a bartender and waiter to pay his tuition and learned more than he expected. “A restaurant is a good training ground for having the ability to juggle lots of immediate tasks and interact with different personalities, understand urgency and timing, work with a team, and know your role.” 

McGowan’s first job after college was at Coca-Cola in Denver before he got into commercial real estate by working with former Dallas Cowboys quarterback Roger Staubach for seven years. He joined JLL in 2008 — when the firm acquired the Staubach Company — and became a “player coach” for clients and their portfolios. When the pandemic hit, McGowan began rethinking how his clients utilize their spaces and lure back workers, as well as the pro-business cities where Americans were moving. 

By January, McGowan was one of those Americans on the move.

“Miami is one of the most vibrant, exciting cities in this country, with a growing economy, a booming real estate business, and a young, curious, vibrant population,” he said. “It shouldn’t be hard to make the move.”