About Dorothea Avery

Dorothea Donelan-Avery is a commercial real estate professional with deep experience spanning brokerage, investment, development, property operations, and capital markets.

Dorothea recently joined Higgins Group as a Commercial Broker, serving clients throughout Fairfield County. She works alongside Denise Denson, who leads Higgins’ commercial brokerage platform from the firm's Greenwich and Stamford offices.

In addition to her brokerage work, Dorothea is Co-Founder of DwellWell, a full-service real estate advisory and management firm focused on guiding clients through significant real estate transitions. DwellWell provides design and construction oversight, white-glove property management, senior and family transition services, and select development and investment support.

Previously, Dorothea was President and Co-Founder of Node Brooklyn, where she led the acquisition, development, asset management, and investment activities of a residential real estate portfolio in Brooklyn, New York. Having invested and developed properties in the Brooklyn market since 2012, she played a key role in building the platform before its successful sale to Carlyle.

Prior to that, Dorothea was Senior Vice President at Jefferies for 7 years where she managed a $1.5bn fixed income trading portfolio focused on Government Sponsored Enterprises and Supra Sovereigns. Prior to Jefferies, she was a Fixed Income trader at Merrill Lynch for 3 years managing a $2bn portfolio. She started her first job in Fannie Mae's Treasury/Capital Markets group working closely with their Multifamily Group.

Dorothea graduated cum laude from Georgetown University with a dual major in Finance and International Business. She attended a full year abroad at the London School of Economics and a summer finance program at Oxford University.

Dorothea is the Treasurer for the Sacred Heart Greenwich Parent Association.  She also serves on the Board of Directors of the Rowan Center, supporting the organization's mission to provide advocacy, counseling, education, and prevention services for survivors of sexual violence throughout Fairfield County.  She is also instrumental in starting a Fairfield County chapter for Operation Smile, a global non-profit organization that performs surgeries on children with cleft lips and cleft palates.