
Ask HN: How to deal with domain squatters/resellers? - halfmatthalfcat
I&#x27;m currently working on a project where the .com is owned by a domain reseller who has, in my opinion, an unrealistic valuation. I own the .io, so I&#x27;m not super concerned but it&#x27;s frustrating to negotiate when I feel like the reseller doesn&#x27;t have a good faith valuation of the name rooted in supply and demand.<p>How has HN negotiated successfully with a squatter or reseller to purchase the domain at a fairer market price that doesn&#x27;t seem artificially inflated?
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agitator
I'm on the other side of a negotiation, so I thought I'd share my perspective.

I bought a domain I was planning on using, but never ended up doing anything
with it. I know that the domain I own may not have a high value now, but I
believe it will be much more valuable in the future. It's an investment. A
prospective buyer needs to make a good offer, otherwise I would prefer just to
hold onto it. I'm perfectly happy holding onto it till I need it, or with some
luck, someone makes a decent offer.

Supply and demand are just two aspects of what determines a price both buyers
and sellers agree on. Just because no one else is hounding me for my domain,
doesn't mean I will settle for less. Among other things, there is a
prospective value that has an impact on price, much like overpriced shares of
companies that have promise, but aren't yet making a profit.

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halfmatthalfcat
I guess what do you consider "settle for less" and how do you valuate your
domain? You have the original purchase price (or your annual renewal costs)
but it seems that a lot of resellers or squatters tend to artificially inflate
demand because .coms are the defacto TLD, yet no one is barking up their tree
(no demand).

~~~
agitator
Yeah, I admit the amount I would settle for isn't scientific. I'm also not in
the website squatting business. I just happen to have a couple of domains that
I haven't gotten around to using yet.

It's more so, that I paid for the domain and pay the yearly renewal, and
unless it's an offer that I would profit a bit over those total costs, I
wouldn't consider it because if I happen to need a good domain in the future,
it will cost me more to find one than to just hold onto the one I own and
continue paying renewals.

