Possibly Acquiring An Expired Domain

Lauras Law

Im currently building website and using a .net domain. I had wanted the .com but that domain was already taken and parked. I never contacted anyone about purchasing it but a few days again I visited the .com domain and saw the page was displaying the following message:
Warning, [domainname].com has expired. If you are the owner of this domain name you must renew it immediately before it's deleted and permanently removed from your account. To renew the domain name please visit <url>

So I looked up the domain on who.is and could see the following information:
Expires On 2018-04-05
Registered On 2001-04-05
Updated On 2018-04-01

It does say it was updated on the 1st April but even today when I visit the url it is still saying it has expired.

From the information I found online, if the domain has actually expired then it will be approx 2 months before it becomes available. If it doesnt get renewed this would be an excellent opportunity for me to acquire the .com domain. Do I just have to sit it out and wait for that time to come? Is there anything I can do to guarantee that's I'd be the one to get the domain if it did become available without actually revealing to anyone that I'm interested in this domain before then?

And if it did become available in approx 2 months would I be able to buy the domain just like I'd buy any other through the likes of Blacknight? Or is it a different process when buying a previously owned domain?

DubTony

Lauras Law wrote: »

Do I just have to sit it out and wait for that time to come?

Is there anything I can do to guarantee that's I'd be the one to get the domain if it did become available without actually revealing to anyone that I'm interested in this domain before then?

And if it did become available in approx 2 months would I be able to buy the domain just like I'd buy any other through the likes of Blacknight?

Yes, No and Yes.

And if you're really paranoid, use different registration sites to check on its status, in case one of them has some software that tracks interest.

asterion

Yes, in about 2 months it can become available for sale - unless someone buys it at auction before that.
The way the process works is that the owner has the ability to reacquire the domain after it's expired - but at an additional fee.
Once that period is up then it usually goes to an auction where it can be bought by anyone. Only once it goes past that period without a sale does it become available. A very small percentage make it to that stage.

There are a few auction sites and where it will go for sale will depend on the registrar.

Graham

If you really want the domain, I wouldn't rely on being able to catch it when it drops (is available for registration). Chance are the domain will be snapped up by someone else before you even realise it's available.

Do a google search for domain drop catching. They charge a few dollars but will monitor the domain in an attempt to register it for you as soon as it becomes available.

If it's important to you, maybe consider using a few drop-catch services to increase your chances.