I came home from Iraq and held my kids for the first time in months. They were five. I had already missed more than I could get back, and I was not going to miss anything else.

Following My Father Into Service

My father was a Vietnam veteran. He joined young and built a successful civilian life when he came back. I had a tremendous amount of respect for him, and in our household his service was a point of pride.

At 19, I was considering following him. The military looked like a way to get focused, continue my education, and find my way in the world. My father served in the Army. I chose the Air Force. I enlisted in 1999, during peacetime, and it seemed as safe as any other option in front of me. In 2000, I became the father of twins, a boy and a girl.

September 11, Afghanistan, and Iraq

Then America was attacked on September 11, and the life we knew changed in an instant. My unit was ready to deploy anywhere in the world on a moment’s notice. In the years that followed I served as a TACP, Tactical Air Control Party, stationed in Afghanistan and then Iraq, jumping out of planes and calling in airstrikes.

In 2005 I had a decision to make. Reenlist, or return to civilian life. I thought about the friends I made in the military. Many of them died in combat. I did not want to become part of that statistic, and not with two five-year-olds waiting for me at home. The decision was easy. I moved to Las Vegas and returned to civilian life.

Coming Home to Raise My Twins

I had full custody, and they were still very young. I took a job at the post office. My time in the Air Force had opened other doors, but the entire point of leaving was to be there for my kids, and a federal job kept us going, put food on the table, and provided benefits.

It was not where I intended to finish. The hours were long, the bureaucracy was heavy, and taking time off was its own battle. We struggled more than I let on. I didn’t want the kids to know how worried I sometimes was. I wanted work that helped people.

Finding Real Estate

In 2008, a friend who was buying and selling real estate encouraged me to get my license. I earned it just as the economy collapsed. For the next several years I held onto it and kept working, waiting for the moment to use it.

When the market recovered, I made the move, and in 2016 I went full time. It took a leap of faith and the beginning was difficult. It gave my family everything we needed.

The military prepared me for it. Responsibility, self-discipline, and a work ethic that does not depend on anyone watching. I use all of it every day.

Since 2018 I have volunteered at Shannon West Homeless Youth Center, operated by HELP of Southern Nevada. Young people arrive there carrying more than anyone that age should have to carry. I lead meetings, share what I have learned, and I am someone they can talk to. That work matters to me, and it shapes how I see everything else I do.

Why I Work Probate, Trust, Divorce, and Relocation

Those four have one thing in common. Nobody chooses them. An estate sale arrives with a death. A trust sale arrives with a responsibility someone handed you. A divorce sale arrives with an ending. A relocation arrives with orders or a job that was never up to you. Every one of them puts a family in a situation they did not pick, on a deadline, with real money on the line.

I know what that is from the inside. I have been handed circumstances I did not choose and had to make good decisions inside them anyway, with people depending on me. That is why I do this work, and it is why I coordinate closely with attorneys, executors, trustees, and fiduciaries, so nothing falls through the cracks while a family is trying to get through something hard.

I hope my clients are not facing what I faced. Every person carries a burden, and buying or selling a home is often exactly that. This is a sales profession and it is also a service calling. My clients work hard for their money, and my job is to protect their position and tell them the truth.

I am a Certified Probate Real Estate Specialist (CPRES) with Coldwell Banker Premier Realty, serving Las Vegas, Henderson, and North Las Vegas.

Call me at (702) 468-6419 or visit JasonGarciaRealEstate.com.

Sincerely,

Jason Garcia, Real Estate Advisor
LIC# S.0167109
Primary (702) 468-6419
Office (702) 458-7070
Jason.Garcia@CBVegas.com
www.JasonGarciaRealEstate.com