IDNX Records Monthly Decline in April

Elliot Silver
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It appears that the domain market hot streak is in more of a holding pattern, at least according to Sedo’s IDNX. A report from Sedo  this morning announced that the IDNX domain price index recorded a 2.1% decline in April, following growth of more than 22% during the last six months.

Sedo reported that there are a couple of factors that may have led to this decline in April:

  • “Glimpse into the the wider economy suggests that people were spending less on domains during April, accounting in part for the fall in the total value of domain sales.”
  • “Another factor in April’s 2.1% decline was a small decrease in the number of sales. This is likely due to sellers’ reluctance to adjust asking prices for their domain listings based on decreased demand.”

Comparatively, the NASDAQ 100 index saw a 3.1% decline and Apple stock fell 2.5% (probably because I invested in it). Coincidentally, April was the strongest month of the year for me after recording a few large sales.  I operate on a very micro level though with some  anomalous  sales, so I wouldn’t necessarily think my performance is  indicative  of the overall market.

Hopefully this is just a temporary setback for the domain market.

Sedo’s full release is below:

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Sedo Great Domains April Auction Results

Elliot Silver
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Sedo’s Great Domains auction from April concluded last week, and the auction closed with over $175,000 in sales. The high sale was Drill.com, which ended at $40,500. Apps.net was the second highest sale at 24,100 EUR. Yali.com rounded out the top three, closing at $23,000.

The full list of sales is below. I don’t believe all of the sales have been finalized yet, so there could potentially be non-closing sales, but here’s the full list of domain names that met reserve and sold.

drill.com 40500 USD
apps.net 24100 EUR
yali.com 23000 USD
hbb.com 12100 USD
xee.com 10510 USD

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Easier Way to View Sedo Sales Feed

Elliot Silver
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I don’t know about you, but viewing the raw Sedo sales rss feed is difficult on the eyes. It wasn’t really made to view in the feed form, but for someone without the technical skills to turn it into something else, the feed form was basically the best I could ask for without having to pay someone to convert it.

I just realized there is an easy way to convert the feed into something that is easier to read, and the best part about it is that it’s absolutely free. If you have a Google account, you can set up an iGoogle page, which was created so you could easily add your rss feeds and other “gadgets.”

There are four steps to optimally display the feed:

  • Visit iGoogle.com and log into your account or create an account
  • Click the Add Gadgets button on the top left
  • Click the Add feed or gadget link on the bottom left sidebar
  • Add this feed:  http://sedo.com/rss/rss_list.php?rss_id=17
  • Once feed is displayed, edit settings to show the max number of names

Although I would prefer the feed to show more than 9 recent sales, that’s the maximum number of articles permitted with iGoogle. It should automatically update for you each time a sold name is added to the sales report.

Here’s a screenshot before:

 

Here’s a screenshot after:

Two Auctions Starting Today

Elliot Silver
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There are two domain auctions that begin fielding bids today. The Moniker / Snapnames Spring auction runs from April 19 – May 17, and Sedo’s monthly Great Domains auction also begins today and runs through April 26. As of this post, there are 100 names in the Moniker / Snap auction and 85 names in the Great Domains auction.

Below are some of the names I like in these auctions. Feel free to share your favorites in the comment section below. I do not have any domain names listed in either auction.

Moniker / Snapnames highlights and reserves

  • Affiliates.org  $201-$500
  • Companies.org  $5,001 – $10,000
  • Mahogany.com  $25,001 – $50,000
  • MovingCompany.com  $250,001 – $500,000
  • Platinum.com  $500,001 – $1MM

Great Domains highlights and reserves

  • CustomPaint.com  1,000 – 4,999 USD
  • HBB.com  5,000 – 9,999 USD
  • LLL.net  1,000 – 4,999 USD
  • Train.net  5,000 – 9,999 EUR
  • Acknowledging.com  1 – 499 USD
  • Apps.net

It’s very possible that additional names will be added to each auction inventory, so visit the auction pages to see the full catalogs.

Read About Sales Before They’re Reported

Elliot Silver
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The domain name industry is an imperfect market, but I believe approximate values can be determined based on comparable sales (comps). That’s how it’s done with physical real estate, and while it may be more difficult with domain names, one can get an idea of valuation based on comps.

Every week, Ron Jackson at DNJournal reports weekly sales information from a variety of sources like Sedo, Afternic, Snapnames, NameJet, and other independently verified sources. Likewise, NameBio and DNSalePrice record historical domain sales, and both sites have databases full of domain sales.

When DNJournal posts its weekly sales chart, I quickly scour the list to see what sold and for how much. While scanning the sales, I think about domain names I’ve seen for sale that could be considered comps, and I also think about alternative domain names (ie singular or plural names) that might have a similar valuation. I search sites like Sedo and Afternic for simular names, and I also privately inquire about names of interest.

I know that other domain investors are doing the exact same thing, so time is of the essence with this, and it always feels like a race to read Ron’s DNJ report so I can start searching for names of interest.

There are a couple of faster ways that you can learn about domain sales before they’re reported and I want to share them with you.

  • Sedo has its RSS feed with recent sales. You can learn what sold at Sedo days before the sales are publicly reported. On occasion, they will report a sale and a buyer or seller will request that it not be reported, so if you catch it early, you may be one of the few people to take notice.
  • You can search NameJet and Snapnames for auctions that have bids. If you aren’t the first bidder and don’t bid as high as the leading bidder, you likely won’t win the auction (can’t be entirely sure in case someone drops out). If you are participating in the auction and don’t win, it will show up under your auction history, giving you the sales price before it’s public.

From my perspective, the second method is more accurate because that’s more of a market value than a private sale price may be as there may not have been competitive bidding for the name. However, the first value may be more indicative of end user value.

Domain Name Aftermarket Sales Up For Fifth Consecutive Month

Elliot Silver
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From my personal experience and from what I have been hearing from colleagues, the domain name sales aftermarket is on a tear, and it has been performing very well for the last several months. Although I don’t generally report sales, my company sold 6 figures worth of domain names in the first quarter of 2012, and I’ve already sold mid 5 figures worth of domain names this month.

This information is corroborated by a new report issued by Sedo  this morning. According to data from Sedo’s IDNX, the domain aftermarket saw its fifth  consecutive month of growth last month. The report suggests that the market has seen “a  full rebound from 2011’s financial crisis.” The report also suggests that the remainder of 2012 could be even stronger, although we should all keep in mind that Sedo distributed the report and so there may be some bias.

I have posted the full report below, but this is undoubtedly good news for domain investors who own very good domain names. It also could be a good time to invest in good domain names since there are plenty of owners who need liquidity and have priced their names to sell.

Press release is below:

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