Talk about a long journey to success. Seattle-area real estate broker Darius Cincys was born in Czechoslovakia, raised in Lithuania and moved to the United States with his family at the age of 12 after winning the Green Card lottery in 2001. To say Cincys is living the American Dream is an understatement.

“I am very passionate about this country, the opportunities that this country offers and the ‘American Dream,’ of which homeownership plays a major part,” he says. “I very much have the immigrant mentality and work ethic.”

Case in point: In the three short years since becoming a real estate broker, Cincys has become one of the region’s top brokers. In fact, he and his mentor Terry Allen just closed Seattle’s biggest deal of the year to date, agorgeous home on the coveted Laurelhurst Waterfront with views of theiconic Mt. Rainier, Cascade Mountain and blue waters of Lake Washington, which sold for $12,500,000. It’s the only home in Seattle that sold for over $10 million this year. Yes, Cincys really is living the American dream.

This contemporary waterfront home in Laurelhurst recently sold for $12.5 million.

Chasing the dream – and following his clients

Cincys has experience in selling a wide variety of homes, following and serving his clients where they choose to live. Ranging from high-end luxury condos in downtown Seattle and Bellevue to waterfront properties on Lake Washington, Lake Sammamish and the Puget Sound. Cincys’ listings also dive into luxury experiences engulfed by nature — mountains, ski resorts and wine country — in Eastern Washington.

Cincys’ business savvy coincides with his knowledge of the real estate forecast and trends. “Regions like Seattle and Bellevue have seen tremendous growth as many major companies, such as Amazon and Microsoft, have created tremendous employment opportunities and a booming real estate market,” he explains.

Surrounded by nature, this distinctive Ellsworth Storey-designed home recently sold in Broadmoor for $3.5 million.

Investing in video + social yields impressive results

Following the market trends, Cincys believes that video plays an imperative role in real estate, and has focused on building his brand through vicdeo content and social media.

“In the last year or so, I have really started investing heavily in putting out a lot of video content, and focusing on building my personal brand,” he explains. “It’s starting to get traction and allows me to build an audience – and ultimately leads to business. People are starting to notice me for consistent, valuable information that I put on Instagram, YouTube and other platforms.”

For example, this Bellevue Neighborhood Spotlight video provides a brief and engaging insight into all that Bellevue has to offer. In addition, Cincys’ online presence on social media sites such as YouTube and Instagram has elevated his notoriety in the luxury real estate market, and provided him with followers who go to his page for valuable insights into market trends, relevant information and the importance of using an agent.

“I have countless stories where clients have reached out to me because I have been active on social media,” he explains. “Video and social media have had a significant impact on my business already, and putting out quality video and consistent content has allowed me to stay top of mind with my current sphere of influence, friends, family and everyone else that I am connected to online.”

A luxury condo Cincys sold in downtown Bellevue

Cincys is gaining followers from around the country, as well — a definite sign of his American dream coming to fruition.

“By putting out content consistently, it shows my expertise and work ethic to agents in other markets, who might have clients moving to Seattle,” he explains. “I have received multiple referrals this year alone that came directly from agents in other markets finding me online.”

Cingys explains that his video-heavy business model proves his commitment to both clients and potential clients.

“Building a brand, coming up with content, shooting content, distributing content — it’s all extremely time consuming and difficult, but it provides a significant ROI, especially if you commit to it long term,” he says. “One could think of videos as an army of ‘sales people’ that are out there working hard on your behalf. While I am with a client, or spending time with family, or whatever, someone, somewhere, is watching one of my videos, and they are getting value from that video. Having hundreds of videos out there circulating creates massive opportunities for people to watch them, gain value and eventually reach out to me for further help.”

To learn more about Cincys and the exciting Washington real estate scene, click here.

Credit for this article Modern Luxury Angeleno