Opinions

I have bought no domains this year!

I have bought no domains this year. This is for sure my biggest purchase drought since I started buying domain names in 2002.

I have not been extremely active in expired auctions lately but I have made bids on over 20 domains in GoDaddy and Dropcatch auctions and watched quite a few more domains. Needless to say I lost on all of them.

Well, I have actually won 2 GoDaddy auctions but both domains (1 at Enom and 1 at Tucows) were renewed after the auction ended. GoDaddy doesn’t give a damn about this and of course of its reputation.

I have been more eclectic in the past couple of years. I am trying to buy less quantity but better quality domains. But I don’t think my pattern changed dramatically this year to explain this drought.

On a slower year, like 2019 was, my monthly average spent on expired auctions was $3,750. So it is quite remarkable for me to spend $0 in January. Of course all this can change with a couple of larger purchases.

I have also agreed to buy a domain name privately for $10,000 but the broker involved went silent for 15 days after I agreed for the amount the seller was asking. I finally got an email from the broker yesterday that the seller is very slow to respond. No kidding… So is the broker.

So I wonder if the quality of expired domains has dropped or am I being too picky. Or is it simply a coincidence?

Sold.Domains

About Konstantinos Zournas

I studied Computer Engineering and Computer Science in London, UK and I am now living in Athens, Greece. I went online in 1995, started coding in 1996 and began buying domain names and creating websites in 2000. I started the OnlineDomain.com blog in 2012.

5 comments

  1. I have not bought that many either. I would rather not buy any than overpay for marginal ones.

    In the last few years the reseller market has gone way up for average domains, while the end user market is is about the same.

    With the average sell through rate many of the auction prices are just too high to justify.

    Brad

  2. Only bought 5 domains this year. its getting harder to buy good quality domains.

  3. Good move. People are overpaying big time for domains, end users are going to balk when they ask for their prices given they have overpaid.
    The hysteria of turncommerce pushing bids up is causing people to think domains are in more demand than they actually are.

  4. From the SEO side of buying domains the prices have been going crazy for a few years now. But there are still plenty of buyers with deep pockets in this market. So we’ve moved from volume of sales to domain quality with higher profit margins.

  5. Even though the quality of domain names have dropped. I think it’s a good thing that you’re being picky. It’s better to save your money for a good quality & valuable domain name than spend money on quantities of worthless domains.

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