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Domain expiry and ownership check
When a domain expires, which registrar holds it, and who runs its DNS, hosting, email and certificate. Read from public registries.
Why does a domain’s expiry date matter when you buy a website?
The domain is the address the whole business runs on, and it stays in the seller’s registrar account until it is transferred. If it lapses between agreement and handover, the site and its email stop working. Agree in writing who renews it before completion, and check the date yourself.
Who owns a domain when the owner’s name is hidden?
Public records now usually withhold the owner’s name, so the record names the registrar rather than the person. The owner is whoever controls the account at that registrar. Ask the seller to show the domain inside their registrar account, and complete the sale once it has moved into yours.
What happens after a domain expires?
The registrar can stop it resolving, which takes the site and its email offline. Once the registration is deleted, ICANN policy requires a 30-day Redemption Grace Period during which the registrar can restore it, usually for a fee. After that the name is released and anyone can register it.