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iNo's real estate market is experiencing a correction after years of rapid growth. Developers have been buying up industrial buildings, converting or replacing them with apartments, offices, and hotels. However, last week, an industrial property on Brighton Boulevard sold to Alvarado Restaurant Nation, one of the region's largest Taco Bell franchisees, for $2.1 million.

    The 6,400-square-foot warehouse will be used to store restaurant equipment, but the buyers are also banking on a future real estate rebound in the area. "They're looking at it long-term as a land play," said Jake Malman, the broker who represented the buyer. The land sold for $168 per square foot and is surrounded by completed or planned development.

    Malman noted that his client could have chosen a less expensive building but liked the idea of a covered land play in RiNo where they can occupy the building for their business and redevelop the site long-term. Across the street, another hotel is under construction, and its owners paid $213 per square foot for the 0.43-acre site in 2020.

    Malman described the purchase as opportunistic, saying his client had looked all around the metro for space before finding the Brighton Boulevard listing. The initial price was $2.88 million, but it sold for $2.1 million. Malman's brokerage business is also experiencing growth, with two new partners joining the firm in recent months.

    While RiNo's real estate market has cooled, Malman's company is expanding its presence in the area. The 32-year-old founder of Malman Real Estate recently brought on a longtime industry executive as partner and managing broker, and another veteran will join the firm next week.