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Ask HN: What is the most you've paid for a domain name?

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Re: Ask HN: What is the most you've paid for a domain name?

#21

Post by adventured »

$500

7 letters, .com address, six or seven years ago

Solid domain name, and I had an interesting product for it. Didn't materialize the way I hoped, so I shut it down. I've kept the domain though.

I've occasionally run across domains in the $5k range that were quite good, but I still seem to find good enough .com addresses that I've yet to resort to buying one. I'm working on a new product now that is a 5 letter .com address, I bought it straight from a registrar, and it's exactly what I was looking for.

I've probably only owned one that was stand-alone valuable. I bought a domain in 1997 via Network Solutions, and have held on to it since then. It's a six letter .com dictionary term.

Re: Ask HN: What is the most you've paid for a domain name?

#23

Post by pkfrank »

jaredandrews wrote: post #15

There is a domain I really want right now that is being squatted. Any advice HN? I already own the '.net' version so I don't really _need_ the '.com' version but I want it. I doubt it is a high value name and I am considering just sending the the admin listed in the WHOIS an email like "Hey, I will give you $50 for .com, let me know." Is this a good approach or should I try to go thru an 'appraiser' or something like…

I think that you have two decent options:

1) Have a friend send an e-mail asking if it's for sale. If they respond with a reasonable price, buy it.

2) Assuming the owner/squatter is remotely intelligent, they'll do their diligence and realize that the .NET is being actively used. In that case, you'll have to decide how bad you want it and/or if you would ever consider re-branding. You could try the: "This is the best offer you're ever going to get, so take it or leave it." But the owner could always call your bluff, and just hold onto the name knowing that it's getting ever more valuable to you as you grow.

I'd try option 1, wait a few months (depending on what they say), and then try some blend of option 2.

Re: Ask HN: What is the most you've paid for a domain name?

#24

Post by giarc »

jaredandrews wrote: post #15

There is a domain I really want right now that is being squatted. Any advice HN? I already own the '.net' version so I don't really _need_ the '.com' version but I want it. I doubt it is a high value name and I am considering just sending the the admin listed in the WHOIS an email like "Hey, I will give you $50 for .com, let me know." Is this a good approach or should I try to go thru an 'appraiser' or something like…

I did the same thing (sent an email to the WHOIS) to a name I wanted. The guy responded and we went back and forth a bit. He had just registered the name a few months prior from godaddy and had just paid the $12 or whatever. He however thought the value had skyrocketed since he bought it and wanted a lot more. I just found another domain that hadn't been registered and bought it.

Re: Ask HN: What is the most you've paid for a domain name?

#25

Post by giarc »

Killswitch wrote: post #4

Never paid much for domains, but the biggest loss was exgfs.com I registered it in 2005ish before that whole niche in porn took off, some dude offered me $100 3 days later, being young and naive I took it thinking it was a great flip. Year later I watched him sell it for $100,000. I learned my lesson that day.

How did you find out he sold it for $100K?

Re: Ask HN: What is the most you've paid for a domain name?

#26

Post by adventured »

jaredandrews wrote: post #15

There is a domain I really want right now that is being squatted. Any advice HN? I already own the '.net' version so I don't really _need_ the '.com' version but I want it. I doubt it is a high value name and I am considering just sending the the admin listed in the WHOIS an email like "Hey, I will give you $50 for .com, let me know." Is this a good approach or should I try to go thru an 'appraiser' or something like…

If it's not already listed for sale somewhere for ~$50, it's very unlikely you're going to get it for a relatively low figure.

Once someone gets contacted about their domain, their estimation of the domain's worth automatically jumps. So if they're thinking it's not all that valuable, your contact will make them think it's worth something. Even a layperson will think it's worth hundreds or thousands of dollars.

Re: Ask HN: What is the most you've paid for a domain name?

#30

Post by fractalsea »

pkfrank wrote: post #19

I purchased Texts.com while in high school (~10 years ago) for ~$15k. I had made a fair amount of money flipping domain names on sites like Namepros / DNForum / a few private forums. A mix of "tulip" LLL.com's, and then a few instances of snagging a name in the aftermarket and immediately flipping it to an "end user." My biggest domain-fail was letting Naked-Celebs.com expire. I bought it for something like $300 in 2…

How much did you sell Texts.com for, and when did you sell it? Assuming you've sold it.
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