Josh is an area native, graduating from Bridgman High School as Class President in 2003. His background is in construction, which can be helpful for on-the-spot inspections, replacement values, renovation tips and help with zoning and permits. Most of all, he is very patient and understands that buying a home can be a stressful process.
Josh joined the RE/MAX by the Lake office as a realtor in 2016 and has since expanded his team to include two buyer specialists – John Zelvis and Cam Mammina. Josh and The Frazee Team, are experienced in buying and selling both commercial and residential property, specializing in Southwest Michigan. If you are located in the Berrien County area Josh and the Frazee Team are your real estate experts.
Q: Tell us about you and your business?
A: The Frazee Team is a large team in our market area, and consists of 8 members in total. We are all hard workers, and we all grew up here in Southwest Michigan, so we know everything there is to know about it; we pride ourselves on being the community experts! Together, my wife, Cassie, and I run independent teams within the larger team. Cassie is a licensed real estate agent, however, she manages the admin team and keeps everyone in line; she doesn’t sell at this time. We have 2 admin on our team – Mackenzie Vazquez & Rachelle Ory. They make sure that our transactions run smoothly and our agents look organized. The sales team would be a hot mess if it wasn’t for our dedicated administrative staff. Since we are both a team leader and we spend a lot of our time coaching and training our team members.
Outside of coaching the team, I do a lot of prospecting. In fact, I spend most of my time prospecting for new leads because I love doing it! I have a listing Partner, Josh Vilmure who works closely with me, helping with both prospecting and handling new listings. We also have 3 Buyer Specialists – John Zelvis, Cam Mammina & Tom Fry. They are crushing it this year!!
Q: Tell us about your Family?
A: My family is amazing! I am the only guy in the house – that’s not cool. Cassie and I have 3 daughters, Ella (8), Nora (3), & Layla (2). We have every pink toy there ever was and most days you can find me pushing a princess carriage down the sidewalk with one of our toddlers inside. We even have a pool and it’s our favorite thing in the summertime. The girls love to swim and we often have our friends/family over for pool parties when the weather is nice! We also love going for walks, riding bikes & going to the beach.
Q: Tell us about your Community?
A: We live in a small, close-knit, beach community in Southwest Michigan right on Lake Michigan. It is absolutely beautiful here. Our area is a huge tourist destination and our population doubles in the summertime. Lots of people from Chicago own 2nd homes in our area.
Q: Tell us how you serve or give back in your community?
A: Part of our mission statement is to “Give Back” to our local community. We do a lot of fundraising each year in order to help people in need and we encourage all of our agents to be involved in a local charity. Actually, I am the Vice President of the REAL Help Foundation, which is based in our community by our association. Our goal this year is to raise an extra $20,000 in order to provide additional help to community members in need. I also volunteer as a Rocket Football Coach and we financially support many school sports teams, pageants, etc. for several school districts in our local community.
Q: How did you come about selecting this cause?
A: Before I became a Realtor, I battled Stage 4 Colon Cancer and I was not expected to survive from the severity of my situation. Cancer became a blessing to me because it is the reason I decided to get my real estate license. I went through a lot during that year of my life and when they told me I was in remission, I knew I wanted to lend a hand to other people who might be battling cancer, or anything else. The REAL Help Foundation was the perfect way for me to get out there, do fundraising, and help people in need.
Q: What are some of the specific things you have done to support this cause?
A: I serve as the Vice President and have spent many hours preparing for fundraising events, provided silent auction donations, and have purchased silent auction items myself. Our biggest fundraiser each year is a golf outing and is something that our whole team participates in. Next year, we are hoping to hold a realtor prom to bring in more money for REAL Help. A lender that I work with actually told my story to the owners of his company, Amerifirst, and they were so inspired by my perseverance that they asked me to speak on their Speaker Series a few weeks ago. For every question that was asked at the end of the program, they donated $50 to the REAL Help in honor of me.
Q: What has been the impact on the community, your team, and family?
A: Anyone we have ever given money to, or have given assistance to, has been so grateful for our efforts.
That really makes me feel good. I can remember going through some really, really awful days when I was battling cancer and just the slightest thing, like someone offering to help or reaching out to see if I needed anything, would make such a huge difference in my day; especially since I was not able to be out and about doing “Josh Things” like I used to be. Since it was a really hard time for me, I am able to understand how people are feeling when they’re also going through something like that. It makes my heart happy to know that I can make a difference in someone else’s life, financially or otherwise. Everyone on the Frazee Team is encouraged to be a part of a charity or donate time or money to a good cause. When our team members don’t do their Daily Success Habits, they have to donate $5 to the REAL Help. We really focus on helping out our local community; this place is important to us.
Q: What are your plans going forward?
A: Our focus right now is on growth. We want to continue to grow our team/agents. Last year we closed on 123 transactions, this year, our goal is 175 – but I really want to hit 200!
Q: How would you recommend agents, or brokers get started if they want to make a difference?
A: Find something that you’re passionate about, or that you enjoy, and then volunteer your time to help with that. Once you get started, it will snowball and just get better from there. Volunteering is also a great way to meet new people.
