Domain Appraisal Scam
Excited because you received an interest in one of your domain names? Don’t be if it looks like the one below, it’s a scam.
Here is how I suspect it works:
The low life looking to make money from unsuspecting people contacts the three companies below, we’ll call him Affiliate Dog.
Affiliate Dog contacts these domain appraisal companies and works out a deal where he can increase the number of appraisals they receive. They would then negotiate a percentage of each referral. Here is a list of prices charged for this service:
- Sedo.com charges anywhere from $29 to $49 per domain appraisal.
- Pedma.com is now shut down (see more about this below), but it was charging $22.95
- Accuratedomains.com charges anywhere from $27 to $87 for each appraisal.
With the deal in hand, they then obtain a massive list of domain names and associated owner information (easy to do) and tell the domain appraisal companies that anyone obtaining an appraisal for any of the follow domains (from their massive list) is a referral. The appraisal companies agree and the scam starts.
Affiliate Dog then sends out an email to the owner of each website on the list, here is a copy of the email I received:
Hello,
I came across your domain name [snip] and I would be interested in buying it from you.
Here is my offer, you have to send me a professional appraisal from one of the following companies. and I will pay you 85% of the appraised price.
For payments under $2000 I prefer to use paypal. And for larger amounts of money I prefer if we used escrow.com
I accept appraisals from any of these companies:
– sedo.com
– pedma.com
– accuratedomains.comIf you already have an appraisal from one of those companies please forward it to me, and we will do business.
Regards,
James Johnson
The excited website owners then go to one of these domain appraisal services and get their website appraised. They then forward that to the Affiliate Dog and he chalks up another referral. Now that I think of it, he may use your appraisal as proof that he referred you.
Of course, you’ll never hear back after you submit your information.
I took a look at each of the websites and sedo.com is the only site I have heard of before. When I visited Pedma.com, I received the standard parked page meaning the site was taken down. Here is what the site claimed (from cache):
Welcome to Pedma Domain Appraisals,
Your number one stop to get the most accurate domain appraisals on the web!
We are so confident in our service, that we are able to offer you the industry leading guarantee.
“If you aren’t able to sell your domain for the appraised price within 6 months we will either refund you your money, or buy the domain ourselves! It’s your choice!”
How are we able to offer such a great guarantee?
Because we have over 70% of our customers sell their domain name in less than 6 months. So we know our research and analytics are working.
Why should you get a professional domain name appraisal?
* So you don’t end up losing potentially $1000’s of dollars underselling your domain below the market value.
* So you don’t try to oversell your domain and waist time and money on auctions and advertising.
* So you have a professional domain appraisal when you try to sell your domain. Having a trusted domain appraisal makes selling your domain that much easier!After you make your first purchase we will email you your Pedma Account log in information. Once you are logged in you will find all your domain appraisals neatly organized (including appraisal reports, and appraisal banners). We make it easy to keep track of all your appraisals!
Research shows that pedma.com is owned by McDOW, Billy support@pedma.com
366 Kingswood Dr, Bedford, Nova Scotia B4B 1T8, Canada 9024950112
Another idea on the scam could be that Affiliate Dog didn’t contact all the domain appraisal companies in the email, but instead created pedma.com, made the price for appraisals lower than the rest and was simply sending people to his own domain.
I’ve read that pedma.com was shut down by hostgator.com and leads me to suspect the worst – that being, appraisals purchased at pedma.com were never delivered or were inaccurate and automated.
Whatever the take is on the domain appraisals, it is not good. What I’ve mentioned above is my view and may not reflect what is really happening – but it’s my best guess, so be careful!
Thank you for writing this post! I found it while I was making research on how true the offer i got is, and thanks god people are posting these stuff online!
Here is my story and my article on this scam
Hello!
I represent a very rich investor from Germany looking at a domain which appears to be owned by you and would is willing to pay as much as $14,130 for the domain.
If you are interested, please respond immediately as my client is impatient and looking to acquire a virtual property within the week.
If you have other domain names similar to the own you own, please create a list and send that to me as well since my client may pay extra for those.
If I were you, I would search Google for the term “name-experts.com Scam” and see what comes up. If you ever question a site, just google it with scam at the end and see what comes up. You’ll be surprised!
I want to inquire about name-experts.com.The opt in e mail list that costs 199 euro.It claims that they have 12000 potential domain buyer list and on the home page claim that
Domains listed in July,2012: 5,158
Domains sold in July,2012: 3,264
Average sale price: $ 3,905 .Is this company okay to deal with?
Just got one of these. I told him to send me $3,000 down plus the cost of the appraisal and them we could talk. We will see if he responds.
I have several quality domain names in my portfolio and haven’t heard of this scam before but after doing my research about appraisal scams I have found that this is very upsetting for serious domain sellers.
Hello,
We want to purchase your domain.
Our company is in hosting and domain name business.
Please email us your desired price in USD or euros for the domain name in the subject line.
If you have other names for sale please email us your domains with prices.
Looking forward to doing business with you.
Regards,
Michael Fishbein
Vice President
Buy Domain Hosting LLC
———————————————————–
This is very sad that appraisal companies go this extent to drive traffic to websites! Good luck to all the other domainers out there!
Hello,
We are going to purchase your domain name.
Our company is in hosting and domain name business.
Please email us your desired price in USD or euros for the domain name in the subject line.
If you have other names for sale please email us your domains with prices.
Looking forward to doing business with you.
Regards,
Anthony Taller
Vice President
Brand Name Services Inc
hi guys another scam letter here
From: ceo@brandnameservice.com
To: me
Subject: re: nycitydentist.net
Date: Sat, 23 Jul 2011 04:48:34 -0700
Hello,
We saw this domain name listed for sale on the web.
Please email us your desired price in USD or euros for the domain name in the subject line.
If you have other names for sale please email us yiur full list with prices for consideration.
Looking forward to doing business with you.
Regards,
Michael Stockman
CEO
Domain Names & Web Hosting Clue LLC
and here are my two cents… after I added my domains to sedo
On 08 Jul, 2011,at 09:43 AM, vice-president@your-domain-hosting.com wrote:
Hello,
We are domain investors. We have found your domain for sale at online auction.
Please email us your desired price in USD or euros for the domain name in the subject line.
If you have other names for sale please email us yiur full list with prices for consideration.
Looking forward to doing business with you.
Regards,
Paul Goldstein
Senior Vice President and Chief Business Officer
Web Hosting & Domains LLC
On 08 Jul, 2011,at 10:00 AM, I wrote:
Hello,
currently I have this domains for sale…(LIST REMOVED)
some of them I think have potential… so please, if you’re interested make your offers in Euros, and we will discuss from there…
I’m reluctant about the eiresoftware.*, but if you’re interested, we can discuss it…
Thank you,
On 08 Jul, 2011,at 01:04 PM, Paul Goldstein wrote:
?
I’m thinking about 6,000 – 8,000 USD for your domain. What do you think about this price range?
Have you had your domain names evaluated in the past? I mean domain appraisals. Without valuation we cannot be sure in the sale price. It’s very important for me in terms of reselling too. But we must engage a valuation company with REAL manual service. So I will only accept valuations from independent sources I and my partners trust.
To avoid mistakes I asked domain experts about reputable appraisal companies. Please check this blog with suggestions from other sellers and buyers:
thenamepros, com/Archive/91638742.htm
Do you sell domain with a web site or just the name?
Domain without content is ok with me. Web site is not necessary.
If, for example, the valuation comes higher you can adjust your asking price accordingly. It will be fair. I also hope you can give me 12% – 15% discount.
After you send me the valuation via email (usually it takes 1-2 days to obtain it) we’ll continue our negotiations.
What is your preferred payment method: Escrow, com, International wire transfer, PayPal, com or something else?
Hope we can come to an agreement fast.
Looking forward to your reply.
Just a got a new one, thank god I found this post and read the comments… Thanks for that, you probably saved me a lot of money! :-)
Here is the full email exchange.
——————————–
On Sat, Jan 8, 2011 at 8:49 AM, wrote:
Our client (medium-sized corporation) is interested in buying the domain. Please email us your price.
They can offer you a good price. Moreover, they can also pay all escrow fees if necessary.
Can we get your answer this week if possible?
Regards,
Gregory Bronstein, Vice President
Web Name Business Corp.
———————————————————–
From: Daniel M
To: bronstein@webnamecorp. com
Sent: Saturday, January 08, 2011 10:46 PM
Subject: Re: e-reader-reviews. com
Dear Mr. Bronstein,
We have been contacted by a few interested parties lately and decided the website will be sold to the highest offer entered by 31st of January.
Since you will be interested in the domain details, these are the Numbers from December (PDF directly from Google Analytics attached):
Number of visitors per month (unique visitors): 50.257
Number of page views per month: 152.147
Monthly earnings: 1700 $ from Adsense, 5056 $ from Amazon Associates
Applied technologies : WordPress
Project inception date: Feb 2009
We are interested in a sale to pursue other projects.
If you want to enter the bidding or want to make an offer for an immidiate sale please feel free to contact me again.
Best Regards,
Daniel
———————————————–
Dear Daniel,
Can you accept 50,000 USD?
Our client has a 90,000 USD budget for several names. Have you had your domain names evaluated by certified valuation experts in the past? Even if your domain has no web site it’s possible to appraise it. Without a valuation certificate our client cannot be sure in the sale price. Moreover, our accountant and tax services always ask for valaution certificates. On the other side, it’s very important for him in terms of reselling too. Of course, we must engage an independent valuation company with a real manual service. So I will only accept valuations from independent sources our client trust. We don’t have certified experts in domain valuations and use independent reliable companies for appraisals.
To avoid mistakes I asked domain experts about reputable appraisal companies. Please check this blog with suggestions from other sellers and buyers:
thenamepros. com/2…..htm
If, for example, the valuation comes higher you can adjust your asking price accordingly..
After you send us the valuation via email (usually it takes 1-2 days to obtain it) we’ll continue the process. Do you sell domain with a web site or just the name? Domain without content is ok with me. Web site is not necessary.
What is your preferred payment method: Escrow. com, International wire transfer, PayPal. com or something else?
Hope we can come to an agreement fast.
Looking forward to your reply.
Hi, tanks for this excellent post, i also have received this scam for one of my domains, and have hopefully read your page before asking for valuations. I hope that this page will stay on top when searching for : domain name valuation certificate
This is what I received today. Since it’s a crappy domain i bought for 10 bucks was too good to be true :
**
I have a client that is interested in buying. Please email us your price.
My client can offer you a good price for this domain name US dollars. We can also pay all escrow fees.
Can you accept 15,000 usd?
Our client has a 50,000 usd budget for several names.
But without a valuation certificate our client cannot be sure in the sale price. Moreover, our accountant and tax services always ask for valaution certificates. On the other side, it’s very important for us in terms of brokerage. As a brokerage service we are interested in good valuation because our client pays us our fee based on the appraisal certificate. So the higher appraised value the better for you and me.
Our client does not allow us to valuate names. We must use a third party service he trusts. To avoid mistakes he (his name is Nakagami ) asked domain experts about reputable appraisal companies. Please check this blog with suggestions from other sellers and buyers to our client:
thenamepros. com/Archive/201754396.htm
It will also help us to avoid cheap services and low valuation results. If you have any questions regarding the best appraisal service for us feel free to contact me.
Please bear in mind, if the valuation comes higher you can adjust your asking price accordingly.
After you send us the valuation via email (usually it takes 1-2 days to obtain it) we’ll continue the process. Do you sell domain with a web site or just the name? Domain without content is ok with our client. Web site is not necessary.
What is your preferred payment method: Escrow.com, International wire transfer, PayPal.com or something else?
Looking forward to your reply.
****
from: charles venturi jr: venturi@name-investors.com
Can you accept 8,000 usd?
Our client has a 20,000 usd budget for several names. Have you had your domain names evaluated by certified valuation experts in the past? Even if your domain has no web site it’s possible to appraise it. Without a valuation certificate our client cannot be sure in the sale price. Moreover, our accountant and tax services always ask for valaution certificates. On the other side, it’s very important for him in terms of reselling too. Of course, we must engage an independent valuation company with a real manual service. So I will only accept valuations from independent sources our client trust. We don’t have certified experts in domain valuations and use independent reliable companies for appraisals.
To avoid mistakes I asked domain experts about reputable appraisal companies. Please check this blog with suggestions from other sellers and buyers:
thenamepros. com/Archive/935175246.htm
If, for example, the valuation comes higher you can adjust your asking price accordingly..
After you send us the valuation via email (usually it takes 1-2 days to obtain it) we’ll continue the process. Do you sell domain with a web site or just the name? Domain without content is ok with me. Web site is not necessary.
What is your preferred payment method: Escrow. com, International wire transfer, PayPal. com or something else?
Hope we can come to an agreement fast.
Looking forward to your reply.
thanks james. i also get same email to. Respectfully yours
I got this email and he sent me the names of the companies he wanted me to use. I told him my domains are through Go-daddy and that is where I would get them evaluated also I tol him that the only way i would sell is through Go-daddy auctions. He didn’t want to do things the legal way and he never contacted me again.
I believe I got the funniest one:
From: “James Zielinski”
I have a 80,000 USD budget for 10-15 domain names. Have you had your domain names evaluated in the past? Without a valuation certificate we cannot be sure in the sale price. Moreover, my accountant and tax services always ask
for valaution certificates :-). On the other side, it’s very important for
me in terms of reselling too. Of course, we must engage a valuation company
with a REAL manual service. So I will only accept valuations from
independent sources I and my accountant trust.
….
I didn´t bother to answer it.
Well guys, it seems robert-sedlacek@name-business.com is another affiliate scammer.
Here’s the 1st email:
And the second after my reply:
THANKS TO THIS POST WE DIDN’T GET SCAMMED. So… watch out.
He has Morphed into Ralph Leonhardt (leonhardt@name-business.com)
He actually used the exact email template above and just swapped my domain for all yours. He is unstoppable and when you Google “Daniel Baten Appraisal” you will find plenty of victims.
Heck even Google crawled the bloody certificates and listed them as legitimate websites.
I will not stand for this. His domains are listed on Godaddy since June-July 2010.
Name-Business(dot)com and CertifiedDomainValue(dot)com
I am complaining to Godaddy, you guys should too. We can shut him down for good.
The following is just more of what you have all provided for above.
REPLY:
ARTISTS Response:
REPLY
ARTIST
REPLY
In other words, Get Lost!
Hey Matt,
I’m glad my information helped you out! There are SO MANY scams out there that I think it’s impossible for the authorities to handle it all. The only thing we can do is exactly what we are doing, which is sharing our letters and warning others.
Thanks for posting!
Jim
James Maurer… you’re the man for starting this site… or whoever you are!
I almost paid for domain evaluations but it all seemed kinda fishy to me. I had place some domains on Sedo to just see if anyone was interested in them and received this series of emails about one of them. I then started googling domain appraisal scam and this site was the FIRST one I looked at… thank god! I had actually already put my credit card info in to submit the domain appraisals but hadn’t hit submit yet!!! Shew!!!
Is there anything I can do about this? Can I report the guy… which I’m sure is using a fake name but maybe report his mail domain as a scammer?
Here it is…
First Email…
My response…
Second Email….
End…
I’m sure the archive on thenamepros.com was archived for a reason… it should have been deleted. I’m sure it was all made up.
Anyway, hope this helps someone down the road. Also… the above emails came from wahlstrom@name-business.com
theyre baaaaack…………
Can you accept 25,000 USD?
I have a 100,000 USD budget for 10-15 domain names. Have you had your domain names evaluated in the past? Without a valuation certificate we cannot be sure in the sale price. Moreover, my accountant and tax services always ask for valaution certificates :-). On the other side, it’s very important for me in terms of reselling too. Of course, we must engage a valuation company with a REAL manual service. So I will only accept valuations from independent sources I and my accountant trust.
To avoid mistakes I asked domain experts about reputable appraisal companies. Please check this blog with suggestions from other sellers and buyers:
thenamepros. com/Archive/9358507.htm
If, for example, the valuation comes higher you can adjust your asking price accordingly. It will be fair. I also hope you can give me 12% – 15% discount.
After you send me the valuation via email (usually it takes 1-2 days to obtain it) we’ll continue our negotiations. Do you sell domain with a web site or just the name? Domain without content is ok with me. Web site is not necessary.
What is your preferred payment method: Escrow.com, International wire transfer, PayPal.com or something else?
Hope we can come to an agreement fast.
Looking forward to your reply.
Got the same scam today: Email as follows:
Hello,
How much do you want for your domain?
We have found it listed for sale and we have a good offer for you.
Our company invests in domains and developed sites. If you have a list of
domains for sale, please send the list with prices in plain text.
We prefer “.com”, “.net”, “.co”, “.co.uk”, “.us” and easy-to-remember
names with other extensions.
Regards,
Mark Groover
CEO
Name & Hosting Businees LLC
========================================================
NOTICE – This communication may contain confidential and privileged
information that is for the sole use of the intended recipient. Any
viewing, copying or distribution of, or reliance on this message by
unintended recipients is strictly prohibited. If you have received this
message in error, please notify us immediately by replying to the message
and deleting it from your computer.
========================================================
Me: Hi Mark,
Whats your offer?
Thanks,
Mark:
Can you accept 5,000 USD?
I have a 25,000 USD budget for 5-8 domain names. Have you had your domain names evaluated in the past? Without a valuation certificate we cannot be sure in the sale price. Moreover, my accountant and tax services always ask for valaution certificates :-). On the other side, it’s very important for me in terms of reselling too. Of course, we must engage a valuation company with a REAL manual service. So I will only accept valuations from independent sources I and my accountant trust.
To avoid mistakes I asked domain experts about reputable appraisal companies. Please check this blog with suggestions from other sellers and buyers:
thenamepros. com/Archive/9217506.htm
If, for example, the valuation comes higher you can adjust your asking price accordingly. It will be fair. I also hope you can give me 12% – 15% discount.
After you send me the valuation via email (usually it takes 1-2 days to obtain it) we’ll continue our negotiations. Do you sell domain with a web site or just the name? Domain without content is ok with me. Web site is not necessary.
What is your preferred payment method: Escrow.com, International wire transfer, PayPal.com or something else?
Hope we can come to an agreement fast.
Looking forward to your reply.
—
We talked back and fourth a couple of times. I insisted that he did the appraisal and that I would reduce the price by 20%, or I asked him to front me the cash to do the appraisal – no response.
Currently being send to the following link
domainexplorer. org/ Archive/ 5716924.htm
(remove spaces)
Hosted by DomainsByProxy. com
Which hides the registrant. Is there any way to make life more difficult for the people that send these scams? Contact the hosting agency or any other fraud investigation office?
I got almost the identical one as Al on August 1, 2010, except I was offered 12000 USD and the purchaser’s “budget” was “35000 USD”. He also used a different name.
I told him I would use SEDO as an appraisal company, to which he replied that SEDO was unacceptable and gave a bunch of nonsensical reasons.
When I told him that since all he needed to get an appraisal was the domain name and he didn’t need me for that, and, therefore, he was free to use whatever company he liked, I never heard from him again.
I just got this one yesterday 7/17/2010, you can see that they push one domain appraisal service.
—————————————————————————————-
—–Original Message—–
From: Daniel Sullivan [mailto:sullivan@webhostingandmail.com]
Sent: Saturday, July 17, 2010 2:24 PM
To:
Subject: Re: allflagsdirect. com (sent 07/17/10)
Hi!
Can you accept 2,900 USD?
I have a 15,000 USD budget for 8-10 domain names. Have you had your domain names evaluated in the past? Without a valuation certificate we cannot be sure in the sale price. Moreover, my accountant and tax services always ask for valaution certificates :-). On the other side, it’s very important for me in terms of reselling too. Of course, we must engage a valuation company with a REAL manual service. So I will only accept valuations from independent sources I and my accountant trust.
To avoid mistakes I asked domain experts about reputable valuation companies. Please check this blog with suggestions from other sellers and
buyers:
domainexplorer. org/Archive/[snip]
If, for example, the valuation comes higher you can adjust your asking price accordingly. It will be fair. I also hope you can give me 12% – 15% discount.
After you send me the valuation via email (usually it takes 1-2 days to obtain it) we’ll continue our negotiations. Do you sell domain with a web site or just the name? Domain without content is ok with me. Web site is not necessary.
What is your preferred payment method: Escrow.com, International wire transfer, PayPal.com or something else?
Hope we can come to an agreement fast.
Looking forward to your response.
—– Original Message —–
From: me
To:
Sent: Saturday, July 17, 2010 4:59 PM
Subject: RE: allflagsdirect.com (sent 07/17/10)
> Hi
>
> We are now asking $3,000 US$
>
> Thanks
>
> —–Original Message—–
> From: sullivan@webhostingandmail.com
> [mailto:sullivan@webhostingandmail.com]
>
> Sent: Saturday, July 17, 2010 8:33 AM
> To:
> Subject: allflagsdirect.com (sent 07/17/10)
>
> Hello,
>
> We have an offer for your domain name. What is your asking price?
>
> Our company invests in domains and developed sites. In case you have a
> list
> of domains for sale, please send the list with prices in plain text.
> We prefer “dot coms”, “dot nets” and easy-to-remember names.
> Regards,
>
> Daniel Sullivan
>
> MBA, MSCE
>
> Founder
>
> Web Hosting & Domain Investment LLC
I feel special. He offered me 35,000 USD
Daniel Goncalves tried to scam me with his come-ons and offers of higher money since his suggested domain appraiser raised the value. I bought it hook line and sinker, except, I charged it to American Express and they reversed the charges.
This is one I got today for the domain pcroomhire.com. These people are pretty smart, they go after domains that may have some value.
===========================================
Dear $$$$$$
Thank you contacting us, I hereby confirm we have received your interest in selling the requested domain.
We find your asking price interesting and are open for a negotiation.
As an industry standard with all domain transitions, we require 2 things in order to initiate a purchase:
1. A proof that you are the legitimate owner of the domain.
This can either be:
– A screenshot from your domain registant; you may blank out all infomation, except the domain.
– An url to your domain with a custom message proving you are the legitimate owner of the domain.
2. An officially certified domain appraisal, not older than 3 months.
The domain valuation determine a fair selling price based on accurate valuation analysis.
If you haven’t made a certified appraisal for this domain yet, we recommend Praisal, as the most trusted and cheapest domain appraiser in the domain broker industry. Get your appraisal here
When you have both things, please forward them to me and we start the transition process.
Looking forward hearing from you again.
Sincerely
Martin Ruck
young@elitenethosting.com :
Can you accept 5,000 USD?
Do you sell domain with a web site or just the name?
Domain without content is ok with me. Web site is not necessary.
Have you had your domain names evaluated in the past? I mean domain appraisals. Without valuation we cannot be sure in the sale price. It’s very important for me in terms of reselling too. But we must engage a valuation company with REAL manual service. So I will only accept valuations from independent sources I and my partners trust.
To avoid mistakes I asked domain experts about reputable appraisal companies.
Please check this blog with suggestions from other sellers and buyers:
[snip]
If, for example, the valuation comes higher you can adjust your asking price accordingly. It will be fair. I also hope you can give me 12% – 15%
discount.
After you send me the valuation via email (usually it takes 1-2 days to obtain it) we’ll continue our negotiations.
What is your preferred payment method: Escrow.com, International wire transfer, PayPal.com or something else?
Hope we can come to an agreement fast.
I received this string of emails yesterday and today.
——– Original Message ——–
Subject: Re: antlerblog. com (sent 05/17/10)
Date: Tue, 18 May 2010 11:37:28 +0400
From: Young
To: [edited]
Can you accept 9,000 USD?
Do you sell domain with a web site or just the name?
Domain without content is ok with me. Web site is not necessary.
Have you had your domain names evaluated in the past? I mean domain appraisals. Without valuation we cannot be sure in the sale price. It’s very important for me in terms of reselling too. But we must engage a valuation company with REAL manual service. So I will only accept valuations from independent sources I and my partners trust.
To avoid mistakes I asked domain experts about reputable appraisal companies.
Please check this blog with suggestions from other sellers and buyers:
[snip]
If, for example, the valuation comes higher you can adjust your asking price accordingly. It will be fair. I also hope you can give me 12% – 15% discount.
After you send me the valuation via email (usually it takes 1-2 days to obtain it) we’ll continue our negotiations.
What is your preferred payment method: Escrow.com, International wire transfer, PayPal.com or something else?
Hope we can come to an agreement fast.
Looking forward to your reply.
—– Original Message —–
From: “[edited]>
To:
Sent: Tuesday, May 18, 2010 1:22 AM
Subject: Re: antlerblog. com (sent 05/17/10)
> Joseph,
>
> My current asking price is $ 10,000. Let me know if you are interested
> in purchasing it.
>
> Thanks,
>
> Keith E[editied]
>
> On 5/17/2010 2:34 PM, young@elitenethosting.com wrote:
>> Hello,
>>
>> How much do you ask for this domain for sale?
>>
>> Our company buy and sell domains and developed sites. If you have other
>> domains for sale feel free to send your list.
>>
>> Looking forward to do business with you.
>>
>> Regards,
>>
>> Joseph Young
>>
>> Vice President
>>
>> Elite Hosting Solutions LLC
…..I received the email just like stephen on August 19th, 2009
I got the same email offering $5000. What a joke is anyone in the world honest anymore???
I received a similar email today. I told the guy the domain was not for sale. Then he counter offered $5k. But only after an
appraisal from one of the companies he referred.
When something is to good to be true it normally is…
Hi,
I received the following email, which is very similar to the ones above. The end result was that I got my domain names valued by Sedo and he wasn’t happy with the valuations and asked me to get them valued by another appraisal company.
The initial email is shown.
Hello,
We buy and sell domains and web projects. What is your price
for the domain?
If you have other domains for sale feel free to send your list.
Looking forward to do business with you.
Regards,
Daniel Friedman
President
Online Investment & Consulting LLC
======================================================== NOTICE – This communication may contain confidential and privileged information that is for the sole use of the intended recipient. Any viewing, copying or distribution of, or reliance on this message by unintended recipients is strictly prohibited. If you have received this message in error, please notify us immediately by replying to the message and deleting it from your computer.
The scammer (Domainsecondhand. com) , iframe ing my site now(dndboard. com).. stup!d Lazy scammer.
from bortfeld@domainsecondhand.com
to leo
date Sun, Dec 20, 2009 at 6:15 AM
Hello,
We buy and sell domains and web projects. What is your price for the
domain?
If you have other domains for sale feel free to send your list.
Looking forward to do business with you.
Regards,
Joseph Bortfeld
President
Domain Investing & Reselling
========================================================
NOTICE – This communication may contain confidential and privileged
information that is for the sole use of the intended recipient. Any
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========================================================
next email:
Dear Leo,
600. Ok
I’m also interested in **[another domain i had that was a much higher price]**
Do you sell domain with a web site or just the name?
Domain without content is ok with me. Web site is not necessary.
Have you had your domain names evaluated in the past? I mean domain appraisals. Without valuation we cannot be sure in the sale price. It’s very important for me in terms of reselling too. But we must engage a valuation company with REAL manual service. So I will only accept valuations from independent sources I and my partners trust.
To avoid mistakes I asked domain experts about reputable appraisal companies.
Please check this blog with suggestions from other sellers and buyers:
domainexplorer. org/Archive-09-2009/91462735.htm
If, for example, the valuation comes higher you can adjust your asking price accordingly. It will be fair. I also hope you can give me 12% – 15% discount.
After you send me the valuation via email (usually it takes 1-2 days to obtain it) we’ll continue our negotiations.
What is your preferred payment method: Escrow.com, International wire transfer, PayPal.com or something else?
Hope we can come to an agreement fast.
Looking forward to your reply.
Thanks I just got the scam email today.
i had been scammed by ( Whitham Daniel ) it was a similar to the way talked about above started of with
——————————————————————————————–
Hello,
Are you interested in sale of your domain? Please name your price.
We are in hosting and domain business. But we are very interested in
Internet names and web sites too.
If you have other domains for sale feel free to send your list.
Looking forward to do business with you.
Regards,
Daniel Whitham
CEO
Net Invest LLC
========================================================
NOTICE – This communication may contain confidential and privileged
information that is for the sole use of the intended recipient. Any
viewing, copying or distribution of, or reliance on this message by
unintended recipients is strictly prohibited. If you have received this
message in error, please notify us immediately by replying to the message
and deleting it from your computer.
========================================================
———————————————————————————–
after say make me an offer the reply was:
——————————————————————-
Can you accept 1,000 USD?
Do you sell domain with a web site or just the name?
Domain without content is ok with me. Web site is not necessary.
Have you had your domain names evaluated in the past? I mean domain appraisals. Without valuation we cannot be sure in the sale price. It’s very important for me in terms of reselling too. But we must engage a valuation company with REAL manual service. So I will only accept valuations from independent sources I and my partners trust.
To avoid mistakes I asked domain experts about reputable appraisal companies.
If, for example, the valuation comes higher you can adjust your asking price accordingly. It will be fair. I also hope you can give me 12% – 15% discount.
After you send me the valuation via email (usually it takes 1-2 days to obtain it) we’ll continue our negotiations.
What is your preferred payment method: Escrow.com, International wire transfer, PayPal.com or something else?
Hope we can come to an agreement fast.
Looking forward to your reply.
———————–
end result is:
————————-
Your valuation looks reasonable enough and I agree with it.
To get a fair value I ordered another valuation from different site.
Since it’s not smart to rely on one valuation only.
I’ve got the figure already. It’s very close the result of your valuation.
Of course, I expected a lower estimation :-).
Anyway, now I see from different sources that your name has a good
potential.
My partners told me about ICANN rule that prohibits domain reselling before
two months from registration. I did not want to wait for two months.
Here is my solution:
I search for a buyer and get 14%-15% upon sale. I wrote about reselling in
first emails.
Of course, I don’t require exclusive rights to sell. You can try to sell at
the same time. If I find a buyer faster I get my 15%.
I’ve already bought opt-in lists to promote your domains. I invested about
$150 in these opt-in lists.
I was already contacted by an individual regarding your domain. His partner
was interested in purchasing. He asked for valuation certificate. I’ve
already sent him your appraisal link upon receiving his request.
Of course, I cannot list your names with brokers and auctions since I’m not
the owner.
I’m going to use your valuation in my promotio? Is it ok with you?
I think if you list your domains with several brokers and auctions it will
help us. Many buyers prefer to buy through auction sites or domain brokers.
Moreover, many brokers help with transfer. I’m not the owner so I can only
use my database to promote your domains and I cannot list. As the owner, you
can list your domains on eBay, Amazon and DomainExplorer. Please don’t forget to send your
auction links.
If you list domains with DomainExplorer.org we can avoid the brokerage fee
(10% at Sedo.com). DomainExplorer does not charge commission upon sale
and offers free escrow. So we can save up to 10%-15%.
———————
DomainExplorer.org is a SCAM!!! The letter is designed to direct you to the scam using associating trusted names such as Amazon and eBay!
Here is one I received today…
I got the same email. When doing some research I came across a blog where the guy has already done a ton of research on what is going on. I think he concludes it is Pedma.com that is the problem.
Check it out. Very interesting.