By 2017, Jon Vasquez was one of the top-producing agents in Big Bear, helping over 50

families that year. Jon had taken a long journey to get to that point. He initially launched his

business in 2007, moved to Big Bear in 2008, took a detour from real estate and served others

in fine dining restaurant service, met his wife, entertained a career in firefighting, then moved

into banking. He returned to real estate in 2012, working for the area’s top broker, Tim Wood,

one of the area’s top agents and steadily rose the ranks to become a top producer.

In 2017, Jon began digging deeper into self-development work. He had worked on real estate

teams for years and was ready to make the leap to become an independent agent.

“I was getting into Tony Robbins, really diving into business, social media, and started getting

really excited about the possibility of going out on my own. I realized I could do it. I could build

my own thing and truly work for myself,” Jon reflects. “I had a lot of big ideas, and I was ready

to move in a different direction. I had a passion for serving people and many ideas on how to

do that.”

Jon decided to take a two-month sabbatical in Arkansas, where his wife’s family lives, as he

transitioned. During the trip, his mind was suddenly opened up to new possibilities. With

young children, he became excited about the chance to live in the country with ample land to

explore and play. He and his wife had many conversations about their future and ultimately

decided to sell their home in Big Bear and move to northwest Arkansas to begin again. The

new adventure was rich with excitement and possibility.

“By the end of the year, we said goodbye to everyone we loved in Big Bear and essentially

traded this life for a new chapter,” Jon continues.

But, as if by a force of God, Jon and his family were pulled back home to California. His wife

began having health challenges, which brought them back to Big Bear to be closer to her mom

and the medical attention they needed. They returned in March 2019 humbled.

Jon and his family took the little cash they had and used it to purchase what would eventually

become their first short-term rental investment property. They moved into it and began doing

extensive repairs. Meanwhile, Jon began rebuilding his real estate sales career.

“It started with a heck of a lot of prayer and hard work,” he reflects.

Jon sold 17 homes in 2019 but wasn’t out of the woods yet. The pandemic struck the

following year, leaving him and his family in a home stripped down to the studs with their sink

on stilts. His wife was still recovering, his son had a serious accident during Thanksgiving that

piled up medical bills, and the pandemic had nearly shut the economy down.

“We were nearly $300,000 in debt and trying to figure it out,” Jon says. “But I went to work

every day, grinding it out, making it happen.”

Against a backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic and personal turmoil, Jon’s business took

flight. He closed 50 deals in 2020, once again rising to the top agent status. That enabled him

to pay off his debt and begin building a solid foundation. He followed that up with 57 deals in

2021 and 52 deals in 2022..

“The secret to my success is an obsession for excellence, an obsession for attention to detail,

and a really big heart for people,” Jon says proudly.

Today, Jon runs a small team, the Jon Vasquez Real Estate Group with eXp, which he launched

in February, 2022. He and his team aim to help more families achieve their real estate and

investment goals in 2023. Most importantly, he aspires to be the go-to resource for families

and individuals looking for real estate in Big Bear — and much more.

“I'm a connector. My vision for the future is to have a robust, expansive reach and be the

number one resource for people on all things Big Bear. I want to be remembered as a family

man who cared deeply, and has impacted the lives of his children and grandchildren, far

beyond real estate. I want to influence the lives of my customers and my community, too, well

beyond real estate or career. I want to be remembered for inspiring others, being rich and

generous in love and care, never settling, and always growing toward excellence in

everything.”

Family Spotlight

Jon and his wife, Joy, have two children, Jericho (9) and Joelle (11). They enjoy just about any

outdoor adventure — mountain biking, hiking, off-road adventures, paddleboarding, and rock

climbing.