Your Real Estate in Cyberspace
Recently I was asked if you can buy or sell a domain, ie www.apples.co.za and of course the answer is “absolutely” - all domains may be freely traded and may be registered and resold as long as they are not set up to profit from another registered trademark ie www.CocaCola.com or www.NelsonMandela.com
The value of a domain is much like the value of real estate - has a lot to do with just how much someone wants it and the desirability of it’s address, one could say it’s position and potential position on Google.
The ideal investment for any agent is 1) his or her name, ie www.AndredeVilliers.co.za and secondly the area you work in, ie www.Constantia.co.za however if these are not available try register something obvious such as www.ConstantiaProperty.co.za or flip it to www.PropertyConstrantia.co.za
A investment in a real estate domain name is a true investment in yourself and your career and of course if it belongs to you personally then you are free to use it throughout your career. Of course there is a difference between a domain and a website to be found at the domain but you don’t have to create a website if you don’t want to because you can ask the domain registration company you use to “point” the domain to a website of your choice. In other words you could point the area domain name you registered to your properties on ChasEveritt.co.za and do the same with your name or even point your personal name domain to your Facebook page!
To see who owns the domain you are interested in go to www.co.za and type in apples in the WHO IS section. If nobody owns it, it will tell you it is available. Registration can be done through a reputable hosting company like Hetzner.co.za (whom I have worked with for over fifteen years now).
I have sold many domains for about R10 000 each such as eTravel.co.za as Rosebank.co.za
I have also bought domains such as Kenilworth.co.za and Wynberg.co.za and Muizenberg.co.za (but I paid R2000 and R3000 for them). I estimate the value of Constantia.co.za to be at least R65 000 and www.CapeTownProperty.com to be about the same if not more.
If you would like more information about buying a domain name feel free to contact me or Hetzner or any service provider but be sure to make it clear to the service provider if you only want to register and point the domain if this is the case so you don not get sold a monthly hosting service you have no need for.
Andre de Villiers
National Marketing Manager
Chas Everitt International
