Purpose Built Communities
Purpose Built Communities is a national nonprofit that supports a network of 60+ local Community Quarterback Organizations across 14 states, delivering holistic neighborhood transformation integrating housing, education, health, and economic vitality. The organization operates as a philanthropically funded center of excellence serving local place-based nonprofits.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2009
- HeadquartersAtlanta, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Purpose Built Communities does
Purpose Built Communities is a national nonprofit organization founded in 2009 by Tom Cousins, Warren Buffett, and Julian Robertson to replicate the East Lake neighborhood transformation model in Atlanta at scale. Headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, with 11–50 employees, the organization provides a holistic "Purpose Built Model" integrating mixed-income housing, cradle-to-college education, community wellbeing, and economic vitality as a single integrated intervention for struggling neighborhoods. The model is implemented not directly by the national organization but through a network of more than 60 local Community Quarterback Organizations (CQOs), approximately half of which have achieved formal Network Member status across 14 U.S. states.
Purpose Built operates as a center of excellence that supports its CQOs with a suite of services: measurement and evaluation coaching (tracking outcomes for 600,000 neighbors, 2,700 students, and 6,000 families), narrative and communications coaching via the proprietary "Where We Thrive" framework (developed with FrameWorks Institute), policy advocacy (including an annual Hill Day in Washington D.C.), peer exchange visits, leadership convenings, and the PBCx online knowledge platform. The annual "Prosperity Starts With Place" National Conference serves as the flagship convening, drawing 700+ attendees in 2026 in Jacksonville with Nemours Children's Health as Presenting Sponsor.
The organization is philanthropically funded, with no fees charged to Network Members. Revenue streams include major foundation grants (Bainum Family Foundation, Ballmer Group, Bloomberg Philanthropies, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, W.K. Kellogg Foundation, Cousins Foundations, Georgia Power Foundation, KPMG Foundation, Bluemeridian), corporate contributions (Target, Wells Fargo), conference sponsorship, and program-related partnerships. The leadership team is headed by CEO Carol R. Naughton (since 2020), with David Daniels (CEO of the Bainum Family Foundation) appointed Board Chair in January 2026 following the July 2025 passing of founder Tom Cousins.
Purpose Built Communities firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Purpose Built Communities
- Legal name
- Purpose Built Communities
- Website
- https://purposebuiltcommunities.org
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2009
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Purpose Built Communities is a national nonprofit that supports a network of 60+ local Community Quarterback Organizations across 14 states, delivering holistic neighborhood transformation integrating housing, education, health, and economic vitality. The organization operates as a philanthropically funded center of excellence serving local place-based nonprofits.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Purpose Built Communities industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Community Development Services
- akta.pro primary industry
- Community Development & Neighborhood Revitalization (CDBG, Place-Based Initiatives) (BPAIANAE)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Capacity Building & Nonprofit Infrastructure Funders (BPAGAKAO), Arts, Sports & Recreation-Based Youth Development Nonprofits (BPAGADAJ)
Keywords
Where Purpose Built Communities is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Atlanta
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Purpose Built Communities business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others
Revenue model
- Philanthropic Foundation Support: As a philanthropically funded nonprofit, Purpose Built Communities receives support from foundations including Bainum Family Foundation, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, W.K. Kellogg Foundation, and others to sustain operations and support Network Members
- Corporate and Institutional Partnerships: Support from corporate foundations and institutional partners including Ballmer Group, Bloomberg Philanthropies, Georgia Power Foundation, Target, and others
- Conference and Event Revenue: Annual Prosperity Starts With Place National Conference generates attendance fees and sponsorship revenue
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels8 records
Purpose Built Communities product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Purpose Built Communities is a national nonprofit that supports a network of more than 60 Community Quarterback Organizations (CQOs) in implementing the Purpose Built Model — a holistic framework integrating mixed-income housing, cradle-to-college education, community wellbeing, and economic vitality for sustainable neighborhood transformation. It provides free coaching, peer learning, data and evaluation support, narrative coaching, and policy advocacy to CQOs across 14 U.S. states, and convenes the annual Prosperity Starts With Place™ National Conference.
Product overview
Purpose Built Communities operates as a nonprofit organization with a single, integrated service offering: the Purpose Built Model for holistic neighborhood transformation. The organization does not sell separate software products but provides a comprehensive suite of support services to Community Quarterback Organizations nationwide. Key offerings include the Purpose Built Model methodology (integrating mixed-income housing, education, community wellbeing, and economic vitality), the annual Prosperity Starts with Place™ National Conference, Neighborhood Tours, and the Community of Practice network. Additional services include Data & Learning support, Narrative & Communications Coaching, Policy & Advocacy Support, the Peer Exchange Program, and the PBCx online platform. The organization supports over 60 Community Quarterback Organizations, approximately half of which have achieved Network Member status.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Purpose Built Model Holistic framework integrating mixed-income housing, cradle-to-college education, community wellbeing, and economic vitality for neighborhood transformation, driven by resident voices and led by local Community Quarterback Organizations.
- Community Quarterback Organizations Support
Quantifiable outcome
- 600,000 neighbors on pathway to holistic neighborhood transformation
- +4 more outcomes
Companies that use Purpose Built Communities
Customer profileNamed customers15 records
Segments1 record
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Purpose Built Communities technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature3 records
Purpose Built Communities partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Seven partnerships are on record, tiered flagship and core.
- Nemours Children's HealthflagshipNemours Children's Health served as Presenting Sponsor for the 2026 Prosperity Starts With Place National Conference in Jacksonville
- LIFT JAXcoreLIFT JAX, a Purpose Built Network Member focused on revitalizing Jacksonville's historic Eastside neighborhood, co-hosted the 2026 conference
- FrameWorks InstitutecorePartnered with Purpose Built to develop 'Where We Thrive' narrative framework that shifts conversations around neighborhood transformation from barriers to possibility
- Primrose SchoolscorePrimrose Schools partnered on West Lakes Early Learning Center in Orlando; contributed $750,000 in in-kind donations and curriculum support
- Low Income Investment FundcoreLIIF partnered with Purpose Built on early learning initiatives, providing expertise and framework development for assessing climate risks in child-serving infrastructure
- Dr. Naava Frank / Knowledge CommunitiescoreDr. Naava Frank supported Purpose Built's transition from one-on-one coaching to a Community of Practice model
- Tom CousinsflagshipTom Cousins was the visionary founder of Purpose Built Communities, along with Warren Buffett and Julian Robertson. His work began with the East Lake neighborhood transformation in Atlanta and inspired the national model for holistic community transformation.
Scale indicators9 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Purpose Built Communities competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC): National nonprofit CDFI that finances and supports place-based community development across hundreds of neighborhoods, operating a network model very similar to Purpose Built's Community Quarterback approach.
- Enterprise Community Partners: National nonprofit that pairs affordable housing development with health, education, and economic mobility programming in distressed neighborhoods — directly comparable mission and integrated housing-plus-services approach.
- Living Cities: Collaborative of philanthropic and financial institutions working with cities on cross-sector place-based transformation; comparable in mission, funder base, and network orientation.
- NeighborWorks America: Federally chartered network of more than 250 community-based nonprofits delivering housing and neighborhood revitalization, structurally analogous to Purpose Built's Network Member model.
Emerging players
- Rebuilding Together: National nonprofit providing home repairs and community revitalization in distressed neighborhoods; narrower scope than Purpose Built but operates through a comparable local-affiliate network model.
Others
- Robert Wood Johnson Foundation: Large national health-focused foundation that funds community wellbeing initiatives; one of Purpose Built's own funders and a comparable philanthropic peer in the place-based health space.
- Aspen Institute: Thought-leadership organization with place-based community development and economic mobility programs, including convenings that overlap with Purpose Built's conference and narrative work.
- The Kresge Foundation: Major national philanthropy that funds place-based community development initiatives and is a comparable funder-class actor in the same ecosystem where Purpose Built competes for grants.
- Bipartisan Policy Center: National policy organization that works on housing, economic mobility, and place-based issues — comparable to Purpose Built's policy & advocacy and Hill Day function.
Broad incumbents
- Habitat for Humanity International: Largest U.S. nonprofit focused on affordable homeownership and neighborhood revitalization; overlapping on the housing pillar but operating at far greater scale and with a narrower program focus.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Purpose Built Communities social profiles
Digital presencePurpose Built Communities financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Purpose Built Communities leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles11 records
Purpose Built Communities funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Purpose Built Communities M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Purpose Built Communities
What does Purpose Built Communities do?
Purpose Built Communities is a national nonprofit that supports a network of more than 60 Community Quarterback Organizations (CQOs) in implementing the Purpose Built Model — a holistic framework integrating mixed-income housing, cradle-to-college education, community wellbeing, and economic vitality for sustainable neighborhood transformation. It provides free coaching, peer learning, data and evaluation support, narrative coaching, and policy advocacy to CQOs across 14 U.S. states, and convenes the annual Prosperity Starts With Place™ National Conference.
Is Purpose Built Communities a public or private company?
Purpose Built Communities is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was Purpose Built Communities founded?
Purpose Built Communities was founded in 2009. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Purpose Built Communities based?
Purpose Built Communities is headquartered in Atlanta, United States, in the North America region.
How does Purpose Built Communities make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Philanthropic Foundation Support is the primary driver. The others are corporate and Institutional Partnerships and conference and Event Revenue.
Who are Purpose Built Communities's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC), Enterprise Community Partners, Living Cities and NeighborWorks America. Rebuilding Together is listed as an emerging player. Others are Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, Aspen Institute, The Kresge Foundation and Bipartisan Policy Center. Habitat for Humanity International is listed as a broad incumbent.
Does Purpose Built Communities have an API?
No public API is recorded for Purpose Built Communities.
What industry is Purpose Built Communities in?
Purpose Built Communities's product category is Community Development Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAIANAE, Community Development & Neighborhood Revitalization (CDBG, Place-Based Initiatives), with a secondary code of BPAGAKAO, Capacity Building & Nonprofit Infrastructure Funders.