A native of Philadelphia, Mr. Bates joined the United States Marine Corps in 1987 receiving an honorable discharge in 1991 after serving in Desert Storm/Desert Shield and is now a Combat disabled Veteran. After leaving the Marines he spent several years as a Federal Officer with the Department of Justice. In 1997 Mr. Bates obtained his real estate license, In 2001 he opened Bates Realty Group Inc. and became one of the fastest growing firms in Metro Atlanta either building homes or selling residential and commercial properties which he still operates today. In 2003 Mr. Bates expanded and opened Bates Mortgage Group, LLC. originating and refinancing residential loans and is very knowledgable with FHA, VA, Conventional, Jumbo, USDA and other niche products. After a brief exit of the industry in 2009 he worked overseas toggling between Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Kuwait, Qatar and Egypt. Later he expanded his expertise in the financial world of investments (Stocks, Bonds, Mutual funds) holding Series 6, 63 & 65 licenses as well as Life, health, home and auto insurance licenses where he helps clients with Comprehensive Financial Planning under Bates Financial Group, LLC. which he operates under the "Bates" Conglomerate. He has been in national publications such as forbes Magazine, the Wall Street Journal, Black enterprise as well as Who's Who in Black Atlanta, and the Atlanta tribune. When he is not totally engaged in helping his clients, Jamar enjoys skiing, snowboarding, SCUBA diving, flying airplanes as a private pilot and traveling internationally with his lovely wife Regina.