Domain purchased from closeout is now GONE?

[CryptoInvestor]

Hello! I purchased a domain from GoDaddy back in December, I got it from a closeout deal for about $17 total. I just got it Brandpa approved and went to change the nameservers, and its gone! I checked the whois and found it was transfered back to another user on the 6th of this month. I emailed him but, why was he able to do this and how is this allowed?

 

[Sunkymike]

I experienced this same issue with Godaddy this month. I bought Canadianmotel.com from closeout. After 2 days, i got a mail telling me that the domain name has been removed from my account. I contacted Gd support team but they couldn't give me any good explanation. the only thing they kept saying was that i would be refunded. The thing has to stop. If i had bought a shitty domain name, they wouldn't have thought of deleting it from my account.

 

[bulkdomainz]

That was also my understanding. That if you put a backorder on the domain whilst it is in auction. The backorder wins the domain between auction and closeout. But I never challenged another member in another thread here when they said it was put as a first bid on the domain. But I won't quibble if there are some semantics. Like if the backorder was placed before or after the auction start might be treated differently. My information was very old, so I just accepted that maybe things had changed. But it seems that my recollection was correct.

BTW. The use of the backorder to hide you bid is about the only good use of a GoDaddy Backorder. It won't catch the domain unless it drops and nobody picks it up ever. A hand reg will beat a GoDaddy Backorder.

....... if you hand reg it elsewhere. I have lost out a hand reg at Godaddy to a Godaddy Backorder once!

 

[Name Trader]

....... if you hand reg it elsewhere. I have lost out a hand reg at Godaddy to a Godaddy Backorder once!

That's because their hand-reg system is as bad their backorder system. But I have NEVER lost a GoDaddy hand-reg to a GoDaddy Backorder. Although I never newly reg domains at all at GoDaddy anymore. Preferring to use my preferred Registrar.

 

[pinkdragon]

I can confirm the method of @AbdulBasit.com works. A month ago, I bought a name from closeouts. I sent an email today to [email protected] and I requested the removal of the 60-day lock. In 4 hours I received a positive response. Thank you Abdul!

 

[Name Trader]

I can confirm the method of @AbdulBasit.com works. A month ago, I bought a name from closeouts. I sent an email today to [email protected] and I requested the removal of the 60-day lock. In 4 hours I received a positive response. Thank you Abdul!

Unfortunately for me they told me I had to wait the 60 days out for my three domains, because they were not Godaddy domains when they were at auction. How unlucky was that? 100% not GoDaddy domains

 

[AbdulBasit.com]

Unfortunately for me they told me I had to wait the 60 days out for my three domains, because they were not Godaddy domains when they were at auction. How unlucky was that? 100% not GoDaddy domains

Yes. To clarify one thing... GoDaddy will unlock only those expiring domains you bought through GD auctions which are registered with GoDaddy and they have no control to unlock domains registered with their partners network like Tucows, PDR Ltd, etc.

 

[Name Trader]

Yes. To clarify one thing... GoDaddy will unlock only those expiring domains you bought through GD auctions which are registered with GoDaddy and they have no control to unlock domains registered with their partners network like Tucows, PDR Ltd, etc.

So it seems But I understand why they cannot be transferred earlier. But 3 different domains on 3 different days, and none of them were GoDaddy domains. How unlucky was that?

 

[ben pedri]

Here's a rundown of what took place:

1. GoDaddy buys a domain from YummyNames (Tucows) for their own portfolio - part of a larger portfolio purchase.

2. A GoDaddy customer support claimed to me that they never got the domain I won transferred to them from YummyNames/Tucows prior to expiry, but WHOIS records show that the domain was actually transferred to GoDaddy’s ownership prior to expiry.

3. GoDaddy accidentally does not renew the domain they own, later claiming there was a system error when they renewed it. They said they renewed it but it was not renewed. GoDaddy’s WHOIS (not seller's) is reflected during the redemption period.

4. As the domain is not renewed, it goes through expiry pre-release at GoDaddy auctions. I buy the domain at GD auctions (and in that process pay for the name to be renewed).

5. The domain is renewed and transferred to my GoDaddy account.

6. I start using it i.e. updating WHOIS, verifying ownership with marketplaces (ironically GoDaddy's Afternic marketplace successfully verified my ownership of the domain…). I owned the domain for 4-5 days and had full control of it in my account.

7. GoDaddy realizes that they let the domain expire.

8. Expired Godaddy domains can only be renewed up to only 30 days after expiry. GoDaddy can’t renew the domain because it is 47 days past expiry and now under my ownership. They are 17 days too late to reclaim it via established channels (when auction won domains are renewed/cancelled prior to us receiving them and we get the email witht he subject line “The enclosed items have been canceled, Arca”).

9. GoDaddy decides to take the domain from my account regardless. Somebody from GoDaddy goes into my account and uses the begin account change/move a domain to start a push to their own account. I received no prior communication from GoDaddy and only discovered this when I received the ownership transfer confirmation email. When I logged in the domain was no longer in my account (luckily I didn't sell it prior to them taking it from me!).

10. I call GoDaddy customer support. GoDaddy customer support says the former owner sold the domain, forgot to renew it, and they need to take it from me to deliver it to the new buyer. Turns out the buyer and pre-expiry owner was actually GoDaddy, they did receive the domain, but did not manage to renew it, so it went through the regular expiry pre-release process.

11. Joe Styler verifies that the domain was taken from me: “As to @Arca we did take the domain from his account. This is exactly what happened.” He also added that “it was the right thing to do.” He also shares that along with my domain, they took back 32 other domains that they accidentally didn’t renew as well.

12. GoDaddy gives Arca a $50 gift card (and commend themselves for their fairness and generosity in providing a $50 compensation for taking the domain, even though they are not obliged to provide such compensation by their terms).

13. GoDaddy owns the domain and will offer it for sale through Afternic.

You can see duplicate auctions all over godaddy ,one is from the old owner offering the domain and you will see a closeout auction right beside it. The thing to do here is as soon as the closeout hits your account transfer the name out of godaddy asap ,the process takes only about 30 min. total use namesilo , So you go to godaddy get codes buy the transfer at namesilo,you will get an email within 5-10 min asking you to confirm ,accept this
within 30 -60 min more or less go to godaddy outgoing transfers and acccept it and almost instantly it will transfer to namesilo. Now no one is taking Sh-T back from you,im sure some old domain owners do wait for the last min. to pay 80 bucks plus renewal fees to get there domains,that would be a reason for godaddy to pluck the domain back,the domain system may already have it set to transfer and even the guy paid godaddy it still may leave the go system. remember that 80 bucks goes to godaddy after 18 days and before 45 days after that verisign gets it ,so even though the buyer paid his 80 bucks to get his nameback on day 44 and if went into your account ,this is a godaddy thing and verisign would not get involved.

 

[AbdulBasit.com]

So it seems But I understand why they cannot be transferred earlier. But 3 different domains on 3 different days, and none of them were GoDaddy domains. How unlucky was that?

That's a bit of bad luck involved. But most of the time it's a GD domain we usually win.
Hopes for the best next time

 

[gina ferrano]

It is however registered at GD. Once its on Closeout, its a guaranteed sale right??? I bought it with less than 2 days in closeout period, than 7 days after purchase, it was removed! Why is this able to happen? Tech support says “This is the first i’ve ever seen this” but I call BS, How and why is my PURCHASED domain still being advertised for SALE?

It's not a guaranteed sale if it's in closeouts. The domain owner legally has 30 days of the expiration date to renew the name. I have been both the buyer of names that I 'paid' for (Godaddy as well as other auction houses), but during the waiting period, the name was renewed disappointing though that may be. I have also renewed names and paid the $90+ and was able to keep my name(s), even after it was won in auction by someone.

 

[campout]

@gina ferrano GoDaddy changed their policy on this a month or two ago. Now if you buy a name in closeouts (that is currently at GoDaddy) you are guaranteed to get it. GoDaddy customers can only renew the name up until a few days into the expiring auction now. This does not apply to other registrars' names that go through GoDaddy Expiring.

 

[CryptoInvestor]

@gina ferrano GoDaddy changed their policy on this a month or two ago. Now if you buy a name in closeouts (that is currently at GoDaddy) you are guaranteed to get it. GoDaddy customers can only renew the name up until a few days into the expiring auction now. This does not apply to other registrars' names that go through GoDaddy Expiring.

Hope you are right, because I bought another one 6 days ago and havent recieved it yet

 

[tldboss]

Thus normal. I bought names on the 23rd, expect to get them tomorrow or any day this week. I bought a name the same day it went to closeouts, that was 10th of January & got it on the 18th (8days), got a different name in 7 days. So, it can take up to a week for the transaction to complete.

You will get your name soon.

 

[gina ferrano]

@gina ferrano GoDaddy changed their policy on this a month or two ago. Now if you buy a name in closeouts (that is currently at GoDaddy) you are guaranteed to get it. GoDaddy customers can only renew the name up until a few days into the expiring auction now. This does not apply to other registrars' names that go through GoDaddy Expiring.

Using myself as a case study, I had a name that recently slipped by me only one week prior. I forgot to renew it and apparently made it to closeouts but was within the 30-day window, and I was able to secure it.

 

[campout]

When I say "closeouts" I'm referring to the period after the auction is over, when you can BIN the names for $11, $10, $9, $8, or $5.

 

[gina ferrano]

When I say "closeouts" I'm referring to the period after the auction is over, when you can BIN the names for $11, $10, $9, $8, or $5.

Yes, I know, the name in question, I'm almost positive was in closeouts but was within the 30-day window. So I was able to get it back. It might have just hit the $11 price point.

 

[Daniel Owens]

N****Links.com is super nice. Weird they let him renew so late in the game. Hope you find a resolve.

 

[ray99]

I have discovered something myself that i though strange about.
Its not specific to godaddy. If maybe some more people could look and see if they see something similar and what i suspect is happening. (I been watching auctions for a couple week and i feel there is something more about this).

If there is a domain on auction, and there have been a max bid, or several bidding and there is a winner that will get the name when the auction is over. The only way that name can disappear is if the owner manage to pay for renewal in the last minute.

Ok, so let say "someone" really want this name but got outbidd in the auction. Do you see where im going with this?

I have a strange feeling that in some cases, "someone" contacts the owner making a offer on the domain if they renew it. Owner renew it for a small sum, probably not using or care about it, the name goes back to the owner n removed from the auction and its winner. That someone didn't win the auction but still got the name. Maybe they even paid less than the winning price in the auction, or they paid a higher price. It dont matter, what matter is that i believe this is how some names can disappear "mysteriously".

Do this happen more often with domains in auction having a public whois compared to private whois? Would be interesting to hear your thoughts and maybe if you can see a similar pattern.

If not i find it quite peculiar about people must be fighting very hard to find money in their life and in the last minute scraps together enough to renew the name. Which they apparently have had plenty of time doing before if they did cared about it. Its less than 1 dollar a month, its something everyone can get there hands on.

 

[Name Trader]

I've never seen this since GoDaddy revised their what happens to a domain after expiry timetable,. With the original domain owner losing ownership of their GoDaddy domain to 30 nowadays. I have not made an extensive study of this. What follows is a logical conclusion from the facts we know.

GoDaddy expired domains go into their auction on Day 25 after expiry. After which their is 5 day of Expiring Domain Auction and a 5 day Closeout Auction. So it is possible that the original owner, if he is lucky on the timing, could possibly renew the domain during the day before the domain goes into closeout auctions on day 30 after expiry. I don't know if GoDaddy have thought about this, or I am somehow wrong on the facts, or GoDaddy look at the registration time, and only put those domains in auction which will reach the 30 day time for renewal allowance and only put them in the auction should they expire on that last day of regular GoDaddy Auction on not. But I wouldn't hesitate to suggest that almost all domains which go thru the last day of the regular GoDaddy Auction cannot be renewed. Which in any case is when most of the bidding usually takes place. But I think it would probably be safe to say, if there are lots of bids up to 2 days before they go to Closeout, almost all of these domains can be renewed by the original owner.

As for other venues. There are too many to be specific. You'd need to review their auction terms and the registrars terms of what happens after expiry about renewals. If the renewal terms conflict with the auction terms, like they do at GoDaddy. Then it is also possible that these can happen (be renewed) before the close at those auctions too.

I am talking about Pre-Release Auctions here. Not Expiring Dropping Auctions, like DropCatch.

 

[anantj]

After which their is 5 day of Expiring Domain Auction

Their auctions run for 10 days (Source: https://www.godaddy.com/help/auctions-faq-890) which means the registrant cannot renew/redeem the domain in the last 5 days that the auction runs for!

 

[Name Trader]

Their auctions run for 10 days (Source: https://www.godaddy.com/help/auctions-faq-890) which means the registrant cannot renew/redeem the domain in the last 5 days that the auction runs for!

OK. But the principal is the still the same. You can renew GoDaddy domain only up to 30 days. So it's not such a close cut thing as I am suggesting above. But the principal about renewing domains under auction is still the same. But your clarification explains why I never see any renewals on the last day. But it could still happen if the domain is not registered at GoDaddy, where renewals may be up to 43 days,. I think we have seen incidents of this in this very thread (or forum).

 

[anantj]

OK. But the principal is the still the same. You can renew the domain up to 30 days. But it's not such a close cut thing as I am suggesting. But the principal about renewing domains under auction is still the same. But your clarification explains why I never see any renewals on the last day. But it could still happen if the domain is not registered at GoDaddy, where renewals may be up to 43 days,. I think we have seen incidents of this in this very thread (or forum).

Yes, for the latter, domains registered outside GD can be renewed/redeemed past 30 days too...

 

[Name Trader]

Yes, for the latter, domains registered outside GD can be renewed/redeemed past 30 days too...

Which might be the answer to @ray99 's observations

 

[Name Trader]

Correction to my reply to [B]@ray99[/B] above.

After which their is 10 day of Expiring Domain Auction and a 5 day Closeout Auction (brain fart).

Making it impossible to renew a GoDaddy expiring domain, except in the first 5 days of the 15 days auction). But still possible for a domain from one of GoDaddy's Partners (where the renewal period can be up to 43 days after expiry. Depending on the actual Registrar)

 

[MapleDots]

Question re Godaddy closeouts, auction etc.

Due to the high renewal fees I decided to let my godaddy auction membership expire. Got notified of it but for some reason I can still use the auction. It looks like godaddy did not cut me off after all.