Pre-Owned Domain Purchase - With odd Compromise?

[Zippo24]

Hey All,

I'm new here and thought I'd pose a problem/question to see what some thoughts are.

I am a student and need a website for portfolio, contact, etc. I have found a domain [myname].com that I would like to purchase. Literally nothing there but a background with his name and business address, I was able to contact the company who maintains it for him and they said he exclusively uses it for email.

1) He wants me to make an offer, IF I am willing to provide him with 5 email addresses under the domain. That's fine by me...I just want the domain and 1 email address. Is this manageable?

2) I don't have a common OR unique last name - similar domains were going for $13 a year on GoDaddy. What offer do I make him? $200? $300? I literally have no idea where to begin...

3) Should I pay the huge amount for a broker like a GoDaddy broker to negotiate for me? I already have him at the table and think he's relatively open to coming to an agreement.

THANK YOU for any help and advice. I really do appreciate it since I don't really know where to begin!

 

[Sparhawke]

I would offer him what you are comfortable with, without knowing your name or the domain there is no way I can this is fair or not...

If you are willing to pay $200-300 then pay it, I am assuming you feel it is worth it so why waste your time and the guys time by making a low offer?

Whether you choose to give him an email is up to you, it is something I have never actually heard of before but I would personally look into what he actually does with emails; you don't want to have your domain associated with illegal activities after all lol

 

[johname]

He wants to sell you his name but you have to provide him with 5 email addresses forever? In writing?

If hes the typical domainer (might not be lol) no matter what you offer him/her they will counter for more. So might not want to offer your full bank roll

 

[Domainace]

It's an understandable request if he uses it for his email. But, I would put a time limit on it, and restrictions regarding spam and volume. Even then, I'd think about it hard, and possibly pass. I would want to talk on the phone to get an idea who he is. If he's just an honest sounding regular guy with no angle to sell, I'd be more inclined to give him some email addresses.

Hard to imagine anyone accepting $200 to give control of their email and domain to someone else - I wonder if the price in his mind is much higher.

He doesn't sound like a high roller or a domainer to me, so maybe you can just work something out. It will depend on how much the money means to him.

 

[Zippo24]

Thanks for the responses!

He's definitely not a high-rolling domainer. He's a guy with a domain that I just so happen to want - a lot. He only uses it for email, so I'm thinking that his idea is "Hey, I can STILL keep my email addresses AND make some cash..."

Regarding spam, time frame, etc. - Would a 5 year limit be too generous? How would I go about drawing up a contract and how do I make sure everything is included to cover my a$$?

Also, would it unreasonable for me to suggest $150-200? The rationale being that he's currently paying roughly $15 a year and would be getting free email for [x] amount of years.

Thanks again for the tips and advice, I'm very grateful!

 

[johname]

"Hey, I can STILL keep my email addresses AND make some cash..."


Also, would it unreasonable for me to suggest $150-200?

My guess is you will find out $150 is not the kind of cash he's thinking about.

 

[Zippo24]

My guess is you will find out $150 is not the kind of cash he's thinking about.

I'm increasingly concerned about that...especially because if I put myself in his position, it wouldn't be worth the hassle. $1000, sure. $100? No.

So the question is...maybe I'll go with [myname].me Are there thoughts on using .me? It's for a personal portfolio, resume, etc.

Cheers :D

 

[bmugford]

In general if you are proactively contacting someone about a domain, regardless what it is, be prepared to offer more than $150 - $200. There is a reason he owns and uses the domain. It is just not worth the effort to sell something for that price range.

Brad

 

[Name Trader]

"Hey, I can STILL keep my email addresses AND make some cash..."

That's not the way it works. Once he relinquishes control of the domain, he has no chance to influence whether his email works or not. Only you can do that. As others have said, unless he has a backup plan for his email address, it isn't worth the hassle for a couple of hundred dollars.

 

[DU]

Don't forget that to have email you have to have hosting. Is he willing to change host or is he hosting?

What about access control?

I think this is a non-starter. I think you offer to buy outright or not at all.

It is possible to configure separate servers but who wants to deal with that pain. You'd likely still have to have the primary DNS entry and setup the MX records.... yuck.

 

[the_poet]

It's better to avoid such potentially intricate situations IMO

 

[glaxxon]

I'd suggest going with .me or maybe myname.(your country's cctld).
Sharing email might become a bigger issue later on. Not to mention the potential spam and other possible legal issues that it can cause.

 

[MadAboutDomains]

On your point about .ME... .ME is genuinely nice and it is ideal for a fresh personal page.

Why not look at a domain hack for your name... Like I found Luke.Co(ulton) which I think is going to do me for a personal page when I'm ready.

Just a thought

Luke

 

[Bannen]

What other extensions are taken with this domain? Is it just the dot.com, or are there others taken? That will be one factor in the price of the name. If the dot.net is still available to reg, can one of you live with the dot.net instead?

The '5 email addresses' would kill it for me, personally. I'd make a clean break - sell the name, or don't sell the name, but all rights are severed if it's sold. Unless you REALLY want to have this person as an acquaintance for the next bunch of years. It always sounds so light and innocent, like all will be fine... but there WILL be some kind of problem/s with it down the road, no matter what. Is it worth it? My favorite saying in this kind of case: 'It's easier to STAY out of trouble, than to GET out of trouble'. Ha

Price: even if only the dot.com is taken and all other extensions are available, the person may still be very attached to having their name-domain. Or maybe not. Make an offer that's in your general price range, and at the very least you'll find out if you and this person are in the same ballpark.

If you offer $200 and they really want around 4 - 500, you're in the same ballpark, you can negotiate. If they want $5000, then you know right away you're on two different planets and there's no way to deal. Just offer something in your ballpark, and see what they say. At least it's a starting point.

 

[Zippo24]

Thank you all for your amazing responses. Truly, I read each one and really want to thank you for taking the time to help me out.

It's been a lot to think about, but I think I'm retiring the idea of sharing this domain with the guy who wants the email addresses.

I'll look into a domainhack, though after pouring over the entire list, the only one that would work for me would be .AN which is restricted to companies located in the Antilles/Netherlands. Any chance that'll change soon?


I'm also considering [myname].co vs. [myname].me Any insight, opinions, etc. on which may work better are greatly appreciated!

Thanks again all!

 

[johname]

I'm also considering [myname].co vs. [myname].me

Is just your lastname.co available? If it is grab it

 

[cache]

even if you offer 1k or 2K, he may not take it if he is actually using it.

 

[Zippo24]

Is just your lastname.co available? If it is grab it

Unfortunately it's not.

Available:
FirstInitialLastName.me, FirstnameLastname.me

FirstInitialLastName.co, FirstInitialLastname.co

Thoughts on .co vs. .me? I'm in PR/Advertising...

 

[Bannen]

How about first name - last name .com (a hyphen between your first and last name?).

Also, I'm an infamous namespinner so if you want to PM me your name I'll see what I can come up with.
Free, just name your firstborn after me