[thelist] registering an expiring domain

[MadItalian]

At 09:23 AM 1/14/2004, Stephen Rider wrote:

>What would be the best way to get this domain?  Wait until it expires and 
>then register it?  What happens when a domain does expire -- does it go 
>back into the pool right away?  I would write them and offer to buy it 
>from them (for $75 or $100 maybe), but I'm afraid that they would suddenly 
>decide that the address is worth renewing and try charging $$$$.  It is a 
>reasonably good address -- in other words, something someone else _might_ want.

It's a catch-22 when you contact the current owner. They might not know 
it's expiring and then again they might give it up. I'd contact them see if 
you can get ownership before it exipires. They might have to renew then 
transfer depending on where it is in the expiration cycle.

Another route would be to use a service ( e.g. http://www.snapnames.com/ ) 
to try and snag it as soon as it's returned to the pool. The process 
is  the domain expires and former owner has x days to get it back. Then 
after x, the former owner can pay $$ to get it back, then after y days it's 
returned to the pool. I think the numbers are x = 30 and y = 90, but I'm 
not 100% sure.

More info here:
http://www.snapnames.com/deleteprocess.html