Ellen Buckley is a trailblazing real estate developer and the founder and CEO of Prospera Real Estate Collective, a national development firm. From transferring property deeds at just 14 years old to leading projects worth billions, she has built a career driven by hard work and innovation. With degrees in architecture, historic preservation, and business, Buckley has tackled challenges in a male-dominated industry, proving that she is a leader in real estate. Her work spans innovative projects from large-scale developments to groundbreaking concepts inspired by neuroscience and urban design.
The following interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.
When did you first realize you wanted to be a real estate developer?
I first realized I wanted to be in real estate when I was very young. I started in the business when I was 14 years old, transferring deeds for my grandfather at his law firm to a local courthouse in Ohio. I began to learn about real estate then and just expanded on my knowledge through a process of having summer jobs and through my education. I remember a distinct moment when I was working in Philadelphia. I heard an owner make a decision about a project I was working on. They were working on some cost-saving measures and modifying the project, and I remember thinking, ‘I don’t agree with that decision,’ and realizing that I needed to be in that owner’s seat of making decisions, to be that real estate developer, to drive the division of the project and make those critical decisions.
How did education prepare you for your career?
I have three degrees. I began with a degree at the University of Miami, where I studied architecture. I got a bachelor’s in architecture and that really taught me about the multidisciplinary approach of constructing buildings and cities and also understanding historical approaches to cities. For example, during part of my education, I lived in Rome, where I was immersed in the history of how to build and operate cities. The Roman Empire was a dominant empire many many years ago and then fell. I thought about what lessons we learn from that in terms of how people govern and live.
And then I went on to the University of Pennsylvania to the School of Design and got a master’s of science and started preservation. I learned about the build environment, what happens to the build environment upon completion, and the effect on the value and the use of those buildings and the cities. I also went to Wharton for business and that’s where I studied real estate development and finance and the business side–specifically, the business side of real estate development. All that education combined with the work that I did along the way. I have had various jobs in Miami, Philadelphia, Washington DC, New York City, Cincinnati, and many, many cities between the Southeast and the Midwest and the Northeast. I have learned a lot that has given me a very solid foundation.
Now I have built a career of executing almost $16 billion of real estate projects.
Were there any challenges you faced when you first started your career?
There were many challenges, but I really love challenges because they give me an opportunity to learn and grow. I had some challenges particularly in the construction industry. It is a more adverse environment, where I have to prove my skills and abilities and stand up to some people in what is a male-dominated industry. I have really enjoyed that. Other challenges, I think, are just learning things along the way that you don’t know. You learn through practice. I went through a really critical moment in the financial crisis of 2008 when Lehman Brothers crashed, and we were executing a large-scale master development project at a 432-acre project outside of Philadelphia. We were funded by a family office out of Boston, and they basically lost their wealth when Lehman crashed because of their business and where their wealth was situated. We had to restructure the entire project from a financial standpoint. And so that was a challenge. But it was also an opportunity for me to learn about how to do that–how to structure a whole business plan.
What do you enjoy most about your work?
I enjoy that no day is the same, that every day brings challenges, that it is a puzzle that I get to put together. Every single project is different, and it is a very dynamic, fluid business.
Can you talk about a project you are currently working on?
One of the projects I’m working on is actually the acquisition of a 281-room hotel that is going to be specifically used for airline crew. It is a little bit of a newer approach because the airline crew have a particular time frame within which they function that is distinct from a normal traveler. Unlike a normal tourist, they might only need a room for three hours while they have a stopover.
How do you balance work and being a mom to two boys?
First of all, I work to prioritize things, and my boys always take priority if there’s ever an emergency or any need. When I’m with the boys, I try to be present with them, and when I’m doing work, I try to be where I am and be fully focused on work. I just schedule it out and create time for both because both are important.
What role does teamwork play in your projects?
It’s critical. Teamwork is really huge because real estate is a multidisciplinary field. We need experts in design, finance, construction, the legal field, and multiple different areas. A real estate developer is basically a director and the producer who brings it all together, so teamwork is really, really critical.
Would you say technology has a big impact on your work?
Yes, it has a very big impact and technology is changing and improving. Staying abreast of technology and recognizing how it can help but also hurt our progress is really important. Now we have AI, which is entering our lives and being integrated into our work. How can we optimize the use of AI in our projects and in what we do while being mindful of the negative effects of it? At the end of the day, we have to use our own brains to make sure the output AI gives us is what’s intended and that we have adjusted and improved it so that it delivers the outcome of the project.
Are there any dream projects you hope to work on someday?
I am working on a project right now that applies to neuroscience. Right now that is my passion project. There’s a really fundamental interaction and relationship between the brain and the built environment. Understanding the effects of our environment on our brain and vice versa–our brain on our environment–is what I am applying to my design and building of a new community.
What are you most proud of in your career?
I’m proud of always pushing the envelope to improve and do better and thinking about new ways of solving problems that sustainably deliver value to people, to partners, and places. That’s what I’m most proud of.
