According to Lucas there are 19,000 licensed Realtors in South Florida, and 9,000 of those are active. Of the 9,000 active Realtors there are approximately 175 that make up 80 percent of the volume in South Florida. He looked at the way those 175 Realtors are marketing and went from there.

Lucas, who uses such means as video brochures and direct mailing, said his approach consists of "advertising with material that is different and unique from what anyone else does in the market, but it gets the point across."

"It's selling a product," Lucas explained. "What I am doing is marketing a product. Whether it's a house, a rental, whatever."

Lucas trained in real estate about 30 years ago, but he worked in marketing before again picking up real estate three years ago. He came to South Florida in 1992 to do marketing for two different companies that needed help in developing a marketing scheme.

"There's always a lot to learn," Lucas said about real estate. "There's new approaches, there's better ways of doing things. One must take advantage of all these areas to be successful."

In a business where companies are starting to discount, cut commissions, and offer less service, Lucas said real estate is becoming "very cut throat." But he can't complain, though, because according to Lucas, the market is extremely good.

"I have had four sales in 19 days," Lucas added. "People are looking to buy and sell."

Lucas said computers have been the biggest influence in real estate because they have made the selling of a property more difficult. With the entire history of a property available on computers - building permits, construction work, purchases - transactions have become much more in-depth.

"I am looking for an assistant to provide better support to the customers," Lucas said. "I sell in excess of $20 million a year, and I do it all without assistance."

Lucas said an assistant would also give him more time to spend with his wife, Susan, and 2-year-old son, Andrey.