Escrow Service For Domain Transfer

IceToEskimos

IceToEskimos

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Oct 18, 2011
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I recently purchased an expired domain, and I'm in the process of selling it, but I haven't done this before and I don't know exactly how to proceed. I know there are escrow companies that deal with this kind of transaction, but I'm not sure who is reputable, and what terms I should look for when setting the deal up. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Have you dealt with an escrow company for domain transfers in the past?

What are some things I should look out for/be aware of?
 


Escrow.com is the standard. Sold about 10 sites through them, all successfully without problem.
 
I have used escrow a lot.

Once they secure the payment from the buyer, they will ask you to transfer the domain. Once seller confirms that he got the domain, you will have the funds

You can set the fees to be split between buyer and seller
 
I've used Escrow.com a number of times without an issue. If your selling a site with content you can setup an "Inspection period" so you can verify traffic and revenue. If the buyer backs out durning the inspection period funds are not returned to the buyer until the domain is pushed back to you.
 
Escrow.com is the most popular escrow service for sure but they don't take possession of the domain and some people consider this a deal breaker.

The process is pretty straightforward.

1) You and the buyer both need to have an account at Escrow.com. Ask the buyer to give you his Escrow.com email address, log in and initiate the transaction.

2) The buyer will have to make the payment after confirming the transaction.

3) After Escrow.com confirms that the payment has been received, you'll be instructed to send the domain to the buyer. Again, Escrow.com doesn't take possession of the domain, so you will have to send it directly to the buyer.

4) After the buyer receives the domain, he has to log in and confirm so that Escrow.com can pay you.

That's pretty much it.

Some companies like Sedo.com take possession of the domain and that adds an extra layer of security to the transaction. So instead of sending the domain directly to the buyer, you send it to the escrow company and they ultimately send it to the buyer.

Aside from Sedo.com, I used Moniker's escrow service in the past and I used EscrowDNS.com as well. Not sure what to say about EscrowDNS.com, I had no issues with them whatsoever but the previous owner sold the site and I don't have any recent experience with 'em.

eCop.com is a newer escrow company, it's owned by the person who runs Domaining.com and he has a great reputation.

All in all, I'm pretty sure Escrow.com is the best solution for you.

If you don't like the fact that they don't take possession of the domain, try Sedo.com, eCop.com or Moniker's escrow service (it's been quite a while since I used Moniker's escrow service but they're obviously a legit company, the initial owner sold Moniker to Oversee and they ended up selling it to Keydrive recently).
 
+1 on escrow.com. Being the tool that I am, I also use protectedtrust.com to send the authorization code to the buyer via encrypted email as a way to maintain the integrity of the transaction and to document the fact that the appropriate individual personally received the code. 5 free emails can be sent a month through the service.
 
jacky8 said:
I have used escrow a lot.

Once they secure the payment from the buyer, they will ask you to transfer the domain. Once seller confirms that he got the domain, you will have the funds

You can set the fees to be split between buyer and seller
Click to expand...

I'm assuming I can set it so that the buyer has to eat all of the escrow fees as well, correct?
 
Escrow.com is legit, but like Charlie said they don't take possession of the domain which can cause a problem. I had a $xx,xxx deal held up because after I transferred the domain to the buyer they backed out. Escrow.com did not release the funds, but I couldn't get my domain back because the buyer had changed the registration info when they got the domain and based on some ICAAN rule or some shit, once the registration info is changed your domain is frozen for 30 days (or maybe 60, I forget). The buyer didn't mean to freeze the process, and worked with me, Escrow.com and the registrar to rectify it but it was a huge headache.

tl;dr - use Sedo for domain transfers.
 
IceToEskimos said:
I'm assuming I can set it so that the buyer has to eat all of the escrow fees as well, correct?
Click to expand...

Yes you can, but when I flip sites, I set it up so that I pay the fees so it doesn't look like an extra burden to the seller.. I think it makes the deal smooth for the seller. If the site is being sold for a 5 figure amount, fee is not a big issue :)

I haven't sold just a domain using escrow.com tho
 
Ive sold many domains through escrow.com,

You will get payment from escrow.com once the buyer advises escrow.com that they have recieved the domain to release payment, it's easier when you transfer the domain and you have the buyer on the phone to advise them to release payment.
 
leaning towards Sedo, because my buyer is not technically competent, and I'm concerned they will somehow change the registration info when they get the domain and I'll wind up in ICANN hell.
 
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