Cia Buckley Marakovits joins Brandon Sedloff on The Distribution to walk through her journey to President and Chief Investment Officer of Dune Real Estate Partners. She reflects on formative experiences at Bankers Trust, JER, and ultimately Dune, weaving together lessons in capital markets, risk management, investor relations, and leadership.

Cia discusses what it means to lead in the “private of private” asset classes, how she defines high-yield investing, and the opportunities created by capital inefficiencies. She also shares candid perspectives on loneliness in leadership, the importance of trusted peers, and the evolving role of women in real estate.

They discuss:

Why her career in real estate began with a phone call and a box of belongings

Lessons from working alongside Dick Gunthel, Joe Robert, and Dan Neidich

How high-yield investing differs from “opportunistic” or “value add” real estate

Why today’s market cycle is defined by an elongated de-leveraging period

The power of relationships and diversity in driving investment performance

A valuable episode for investors and operators interested in capital markets strategy, leadership, and navigating private real estate.

Links:

Dune Real Estate Partners - https://dunerealestate.com/

Cia on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/cia-buckley-marakovits-96722111/

Brandon on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/bsedloff/

Juniper Square - https://www.junipersquare.com/

Topics:

(00:00:00) - Intro

(00:01:58) - Cia’s background and career

(00:21:39) - Transitioning to Dune

(00:28:20) - The correlation of loneliness and success

(00:32:42) - The state of Dune today

(00:37:33) - High-yield real estate

(00:40:50) - When opportunistic deals make sense

(00:45:05) - Private Real Estate in a world that pushes transparency

(00:48:57) - The 2025 cycle

(00:51:48) - The role of women in Real Estate