domain expiration issues
 

Yes, I'm lame.

While browsing, I found a TGP whos .com domain expires in a few days and has a Google PR 4.

Is there a service that you can pay upfront so its automatically registered?

Backorder it - check pool.com

ouch:1orglaugh

Is the site live right now? If so, it won't be available for awhile.

Expiring domains first go through a redemption period where the registrar generally allows the domain owner some time to extend his registration (for a higher priced fee than normal registry extension). I think this redemption grace period is 30-days. After this grace period, if the owner still hasn't renewed, the domain goes into a 5 day pending delete period before the domain becomes available for a new registration by a new owner.

Any domain that has significant PR or overture search results will be on the radar of many expired domain hawks (people like Taboo or DNBuyer). :1orglaugh

Should you try to do a simple backorder at Godaddy or somewhere else, the odds of them catching this name for you are slim. If it's a good domain (whether by name or traffic), people will pre-bid this name up at drop-catching services such as SnapNames, Pool.com, or Enom's Club Drop. These companies have a much greater chance of catching it than GoDaddy or any individual person who tries to hand reg it at the time of it becoming available.

A PR4 site isn't that great, but if the site has backlinks and is getting a handful of visitors a day (more than 10-20) than you can bet it is worth more than the registration fee to someone. You can backorder it at GoDaddy in the meantime, but if you really want it I would recommend also getting a free account at a drop catching service and try to pick it up there. I think the easiest would be at Enom's Club Drop.

In a month or so from now (or whenever it gets deleted) you could put in a small bid for this at Enom and if you catch it you pay just $10 + registration fee. If others at Enom also bid for it, the name goes into a private auction for those who went after the domain.

Again, all of this is based on the assumption the domain is still active now and hasn't entered the grace period. Most likely if the site is making money for the owner, he will renew the domain the moment his site doesn't resolve. :Graucho

But you never know. Some people abandon their names/sites or have other life circumstances that keep them from renewing profitable domains.

thanks for an excellent reply paxton.

the site doesn't seem to be updated often, been same for weeks.

however, a google search shows upto 5k results, mainly galleries who have a recip link to it... so it might have traffic.

:thumbsup