discuss Process for buying an expired domain (looking for expert and community feedback & improvements)

[laponjade]

Hi everyone,

I wanted to share the full process I followed to acquire my first expired domain and get feedback from more experienced investors. I’m sure there are things I missed or could improve, so any insights would be really valuable.

1. Choosing the cheapest registrar / marketplace
I started by comparing pricing across different platforms and found that Spaceship offered the best overall prices for registration.
However, I also noticed that Porkbun seems very competitive as well.

Question: From your experience, which one is better long-term (pricing, reliability, resale workflow)?

2. Trademark & ICANN checks
Before buying, I did some basic checks to avoid legal issues, including ICANN-related checks and a quick trademark search.

3. Backlink & history analysis
I analyzed:
• Backlinks using Ahrefs
• Domain history using Wayback Machine

The goal was to ensure the domain wasn’t previously spammed or misused.

4. Pricing the domain
To estimate the value, I used:
• Comparable sales from NameBio
• AI valuation tools like HumbleWorth

I didn’t go very deep into valuation, so I’m not fully confident in this step (if you have any other tools or websites feel free to share it ).


5. Purchase & listing strategy
• Purchased the domain via Spaceship
• Set nameservers to Afternic for broader exposure


Curious about the domain I picked?
It’s Flightlists.com (I’m open to feedback on the name itself as well.)


What I’m looking for:
• What steps did I miss?
• What would you improve in this process?
• Any tools or resources you recommend?
• Was this a solid approach for a first acquisition?

I’d really appreciate insights from more experienced members — feel free to share any feedback or suggestions.

 

[tricknguyen]

Hi mate, thanks for sharing, but did you check DotDB to see if travel or logistics companies are actively using "Flightlists"? I think it is a similar tool

 

[katerleonid]

ExpiredDomains already shows most of the details above, so there’s no need to search across multiple sources.

 

[Lampard0]

Consider diversifying marketplaces (not just Afternic) and validating brandability, Flightlists.com is decent, but its resale potential depends heavily on niche demand and buyer targeting

 

[laponjade]

Hi mate, thanks for sharing, but did you check DotDB to see if travel or logistics companies are actively using "Flightlists"? I think it is a similar tool

Hi @tricknguyen , thanks for your sharing. No i didn't hear about dotDB before but when searching for it i found it interesting , instead i used namebio.com to see similar domains for pricing strategy.
If you have other interesting tools feel free to share it.