Fourteen million. That is the reported cost of the most expensive domain name sold in history: sex.com. Now, how much will your next domain cost you?
Worrying about how much and how you will pay for the next domain name won’t matter that much as long as you won’t go after something that has an expensive price tag and sold by an unfamiliar company. There is also the danger of being scammed. In order to avoid this, use a domain escrow company.
Escrow Service
An escrow company plays as a third party involved in the selling-buying process. Simply put, it ensures that both parties will get what they’re supposed to get: payment for the seller and domain name for the buyer.
Paying through an escrow secures the interest of both parties. The buyer will only get the domain name once he has paid the escrow. Meanwhile, the seller will never get the payment from the escrow without giving the domain name to the buyer.
Settling an Escrow Payment
First and foremost, both buyer and seller should agree to use an escrow service and decide who will shoulder the escrow service charge. You may want to split the bill since it will eventually benefit both of you in the long run.
Agreement
A signed agreement is required by the escrow company, which includes the amount to be paid to the seller, date of domain delivery, how it is transferred to the buyer, and remedies during a dispute.
The seller and the buyer then sign the agreement.
The Escrow Process
The buyer sends money for the seller through the escrow company. The seller is notified to transfer the domain name into the agreed registrar account. This domain name should be the same as what is spelled out in the agreement.
The escrow company prompts the buyer that the transfer has been made. The buyer, in turn, checks the transfer and confirms it to the escrow company. After the buyer confirms receipt of the domain, the escrow company releases the payment to the seller.
What happens if…
If the seller fails to transfer the domain name to the buyer, the escrow company steps in and checks on the seller and see what might have caused the delay.
If the buyer fails to confirm the transfer of the domain name, the escrow company will also step in and confirms the transfer itself. Once the transfer is confirmed, the escrow company will then release the payment to the seller.
Period of buying-selling process
The common domain buying process through an escrow takes around two to five business days. The quicker the buyer and seller perform their obligations, the faster the transaction will be.
However, it’s not a matter of how quickly the buyer can receive the domain or how quickly the seller receives his payment. What matters the most is the peace of mind of both parties in the whole course of this buying-selling process and this can be attained by using a reliable escrow company.