Selling domains in 2013

November 14, 2013 4:28 AM

I have a private offer to buy a domain that I registered with Network Solutions. It's not worth much, and I'm selling for less than $200. After some email communication, I'm happy to just trust the buyer to deposit funds in my Paypal account. Question: How do I actually do this in 2013? Do I have to use a domain escrow service and then eat the commission fee? I seriously cannot figure out how to do a direct person-to-person transfer/sale without using escrow. Every search for "transfer domain" points to transferring back to Network Solutions. Every search for "sell domain" points to escrow services. I'm stumped and turn to you. Please explain it to me like I'm in elementary school. Thanks.
posted by ImproviseOrDie to Technology (4 answers total)

You are looking to transfer a domain to someone else, correct? You do not need an escrow service to do this.

On your end, after you've gotten your money, you'll want to go in to your Network Solutions control panel and change the Primary Contact for the domain to the buyer's email address. Then unlock the domain and request an Authorization Code be sent.

They'll receive this code & then can initiate the transfer at their registrar of choice. The transfer itself can take anywhere from 7-10 business days.

Network Solutions also has a how-to page for this which has more info.

Note: Network Solutions can trigger a "hidden lock" based on "suspicious" activity. This seems to be triggered if the account's password is reset in combination with changing the contact information. So, if you need to reset the password on your account to access it, wait a few days to unlock the domain & request the Authorization code.

Hope this helps.
posted by jammy at 5:11 AM on November 14, 2013

Wow, thanks for the fast answer. I wasn't using the right terminology to look for my answer on Network Solutions. Getting it done right now.
posted by ImproviseOrDie at 5:39 AM on November 14, 2013

I think jammy's answer is based on the assumption that the seller is willing to send you funds first without having the domain or having the domain in escrow. I didn't see in your question any statement of the buyer's willingness to do that.
posted by Dansaman at 8:24 AM on November 14, 2013

Yes, good point, Dansaman. For others searching this subject in the future: The buyer is indeed willing to send me funds first before I initiate the domain transfer. The buyer and I have developed enough trust to do it this way. If we hadn't, I'm not sure jammy's answer would work for me.
posted by ImproviseOrDie at 4:24 PM on November 14, 2013