Neither side should go first. Escrow holds the money while the domain moves, releases it once the transfer confirms, and costs a small percentage that is trivial against the alternative.

The problem escrow solves

Two strangers, an asset that moves through a system neither controls, and a payment that cannot be reversed once sent.

Whoever goes first is exposed. The seller who transfers first may not be paid. The buyer who pays first may receive nothing, and has little practical recourse against somebody in another country.

Escrow removes the problem. A third party holds the funds, the domain moves, the transfer is verified, and the money is released.

The fee is a small percentage, usually negotiated as split or paid by the buyer, and it is trivial against the amount at risk.

Anybody insisting on a direct payment for a meaningful sum is asking you to take a risk that has a standard solution, which is itself informative.

How the transfer actually works

The mechanics, which are the same whether or not money is involved.

  1. The domain is unlocked at the current registrar.
  2. An authorisation code is obtained, which proves the holder consented.
  3. The buyer initiates a transfer at their registrar using that code.
  4. The current registrar confirms with the registrant, usually by email.
  5. A waiting period elapses, which for most extensions is several days.
  6. The transfer completes and the domain appears in the buyer's account.

Two constraints that surprise people. A domain generally cannot be transferred within a period after registration or after a previous transfer, and the registrant email has to be reachable, since step four goes there.

An out-of-date registrant address is the most common reason a transfer stalls, and fixing it can itself trigger a lock period.

The faster alternative

Where both parties use the same registrar.

An account-to-account push moves the domain within the registrar without a formal transfer, which is quicker and avoids the waiting period.

It is worth asking whether the buyer would open an account at your registrar for the purpose, since it removes several days and several failure points.

Escrow services support this arrangement and will verify it the same way.

What to agree before anything moves

In writing, even for a modest sale.

The fifth is where disputes originate. A buyer may assume the website content, the email history, the social accounts and the traffic come with it. Usually none of them do.

State that the sale is the domain only, or list precisely what accompanies it.

Before you hand it over

The step sellers forget until afterwards.

A domain frequently carries more than a website. Email addresses on it, accounts registered using those addresses, password resets pointing at them, and services authenticating against the domain.

Transferring the domain hands all of that to the buyer, including the ability to receive mail sent to addresses you used to use.

What to do first: move every account off email addresses on that domain, change recovery addresses everywhere, export anything you need from the mailboxes, and check nothing important still points at it.

Do that before the transfer, not after, because afterwards you cannot receive the confirmation codes.

Buying, from the other side

The same protections and two extra checks.

Confirm the seller actually controls it, which escrow verification handles and a private arrangement does not.

Check the domain's history before committing. A name previously used for something disreputable can carry consequences into its next life, and that is visible in archives and in whether it appears in search results at all.

And confirm it is not subject to a dispute or a trademark conflict, since buying a problem is still buying it.

Red flags worth stopping for

Insistence on payment outside escrow. Pressure to complete quickly. A price far below what the name suggests. A seller who cannot answer basic questions about the domain's history. Payment methods that cannot be reversed, requested by somebody you have never dealt with.

Domain sales are a well-established market with standard practices. Anybody avoiding them is avoiding them for a reason.

The transfer mechanics in the ordinary case, without a sale attached, are covered in moving a domain between registrars.

Frequently asked questions

Why use escrow?

Whoever goes first is exposed. Escrow holds the funds, the domain moves, the transfer is verified, and the money is released. The fee is trivial against the risk.

What does a transfer involve?

Unlocking at the current registrar, obtaining an authorisation code, initiating at the new one, confirming with the registrant, a waiting period, then completion.

What stalls transfers most often?

An out-of-date registrant email, since the confirmation goes there. Fixing it can itself trigger a lock period.

Is there a faster method?

Yes, where both parties use the same registrar. An account-to-account push avoids the formal transfer and its waiting period.

What should the agreement state?

The exact domain, price, who pays the escrow fee, method and timeline, what is included and explicitly what is not, and what happens if the transfer fails.

What must a seller do first?

Move every account off email addresses on that domain and change recovery addresses. After transfer you cannot receive confirmation codes sent there.

West Coast Media Solutions Inc. provides web design, web development, hosting, digital marketing, and business consulting to organisations across Canada, drawing on more than twenty-five years in the field.

Selling a domain to somebody who wants it sent first?

We set it up through escrow and check what else is attached to that domain before anything moves.

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