SHORT ANSWER: An expired domain is a domain name that was once registered to an individual or a company whose registration has expired.

LONG ANSWER: When you purchase a domain name, it must be registered to a person or a business, your choice. After you’ve registered your domain name, either to yourself or to your company, you own it for a year. Every year after that you can renew your ownership. Domain name renewal costs anywhere from $5 to $15, depending on which domain name registrar you use.

Most domain name registrars give you the option of a multi-year renewal, which saves a few dollars and the headache of renewing every year. Multi-year renewals are a good idea if you have a domain name you are pretty certain you will want for the foreseeable future.

Even if you decide to let go of the website attached to the name, you can always use it for PPC and affiliate ads like the big guys do!

An expired domain name is just a domain name with an expired registration - nobody owns it anymore. If you fail to renew your domain name, it becomes available for purchase.

Why would someone let go of a good domain name?

• Perhaps the domain name turned out to be not so good!
• Absentminded website owners who simply neglected to renew their domain names;
• Webmasters who got tied up in other ventures or interests;
• Webmasters who discontinued a site due to time constraints;
• Webmasters who ran out of money to continue to operate.

Your domain name registrar should send you several renewal notices prior to the name expiring so you don’t miss renewing a domain name you want. Make sure your email address is correct and deliverable so you don’t miss a renewal!

These days, when a domain name expires, domain name registrars “take over” the name for a few months afterwards, before releasing it to be sold again. Domain name registrars park that page with PPC ads on it so they can rake in the profits - no matter how small - from any continuing traffic you’ve built up. The page will be filled with PPC ads, all profits going to the registrar. Smart!

Here’s the rub: if you decide you want the name back after it’s expired and the registrar has assumed control of it, the registrar will charge you anywhere from $50 to $150 (those are the prices I’ve seen) to pull that domain name out of limbo and reinstate it to you! (You never know about a domain name. Out of the blue it could get a few PPC dollars - even if only from misspellings!)

The lesson here is, if there is any chance you can use that domain name, make sure your email address is good so you don’t miss your renewal!