Help a skint domain name seeker out!

February 21, 2008 3:50 AM

Cheapest way to register an expired Godaddy domain?

I've had my eye on a .com domain for a while but it was registered via godaddy with domains-by-proxy contact details.

Idly checking it again today, I find that whois now reports that the domain expired on January 15th. When I go through the Godaddy shopping cart, it's letting me "buy" the domain (their "Domain Buy Service Package") for $59.99 ($49.99 with a $10 promo code) but that would wipe out my long hoarded paypal funds so I'm wondering if I should wait until it comes out of its "grace period" and just pay the normal $6.99 fee? Is there a way to determine when it will be on the open market?

Help!

posted by ceri richard to computers & internet (5 comments total)

as soon as it enters the open market it will be snapped up within seconds.

Read the fine print to godaddy guarantee they will get the domain for you as soon as it expires?
posted by moochoo at 5:10 AM on February 21, 2008

http://www.mikeindustries.com/blog/archive/2005/03/how-to-snatch-an-expiring-domain

gives a good overview
posted by moochoo at 5:11 AM on February 21, 2008

Thank you moochoo, lots of information there. Time to walk away I think (dammit!)
posted by ceri richard at 6:50 AM on February 21, 2008

Domain Buy Service is just their "we'll contact the owner and see if they're willing to sell" - don't pay it. Rather, buy a backorder. If the domain does expire, you'll be first in line to grab it when it completes its redemption.
posted by phredgreen at 8:55 AM on February 21, 2008

Wait a few weeks and reregister it after it gets knocked off the "just expired!" lists. I had to do this with a domain of mine that Godaddy "forgot" to renew. They couldn't help me on the NINETY DOLLARS it would cost to reacquire it, and I refused to pay $90 for a goddamn domain. I waited 4 weeks and randomly found it in a search. I acquired it on the spot for $6.99 because of a Godaddy sale.

Then again, this only works if you have a domain name that isn't all "omfg i have to get this domain right now!".
posted by damnjezebel at 7:35 PM on February 21, 2008