What’s New at Afternic: Lease to Own for Custom Checkout Link, Search Insights, and More

This year has already been a year of innovation at Afternic, with some key Transaction Assurance, Self-Brokerage, and AI updates. As we continue adding value to sellers, here are some of our latest release highlights, designed to help you close more deals, manage your portfolio more efficiently, and stay ahead of market trends.

Lease to Own Comes to Custom Checkout Link

Custom Checkout Link has become a go-to solution for sellers closing externally negotiated sales. Whether you’re finalizing a deal from your own outreach or a third-party negotiation, it’s a fast way to send your buyer a GoDaddy-backed payment link – with global payment options and support.

Now, we’re excited to introduce Lease to Own (LTO) as an option within Custom Checkout Link through GoDaddy’s checkout process. This gives your buyers the flexibility to pay for a domain over 12 months while you generate recurring revenue from the sale.

Here’s how it works:

1. Generate your Custom Checkout Link just like you would for a Buy It Now (BIN) transaction.
2. Choose LTO for domains priced between $495 and $100,000.
3. Send the link to your buyer – they can check out using any of GoDaddy’s globally available payment methods.

It’s a simple way to unlock a whole new segment of buyers who prefer or require payment flexibility. Best of all, commission for LTO sales via Custom Checkout Link is 10%.

GoDaddy Search Insights: Now in Your Portfolio

Understanding buyer demand is crucial for domain investors – and we’re making it easier than ever to see how much attention your names are getting.

GoDaddy Search Insights is now available for Discount Domain Club Domain Pro members, right on your Afternic portfolio page.

With this new feature, you’ll see genuine, human-driven, exact-match search data for your domains – helping you make smarter pricing and sales decisions based on real market signals.

Want to see how it works? Read our full release here.

Self-Brokerage: More Features, More Control

Since the launch of Self-Brokerage earlier this year, we’ve listened to your feedback and continued to enhance the experience for sellers who want to negotiate directly with buyers.

New in Self-Brokerage:

• LTO Offer payment flexibility directly to your leads.
• Seen Message Receipts: Know when buyers have viewed your messages for more transparent negotiations.
• Improved Email Communications: Smoother, clearer interactions every step of the way.

Along with these three updates, we’ve reduced friction and simplified account setup for Self-Brokered buyers. Results from our early testing show a 45%+ improvement in lead submissions for Self-Brokerage!

You can find all the details in our recent Self-Brokerage post.

Enhanced Brokerage Handoff and Buyer Communications

Another Self-Brokerage update that we’re excited to share is focused on buyer/broker communications.

Sellers have always had the option to pass negotiations to one of our expert brokers. Before, these broker-led negotiations would take place via email.

Now, when a Self-Brokered lead is transferred to a broker, the broker can now communicate and negotiate directly with buyers within GoDaddy’s Negotiation panel. Buyers can respond through this same panel.

AI‑Powered Compliance Review: Faster Listing Approvals

Our compliance process carefully reviews domain names that are flagged by our system, often due to factors such as the presence of trademarked terms or insensitive themes. New technology means we’ve been able to streamline this process.

We’ve introduced an AI‑driven compliance review for Afternic domain listing submissions that uses contextual understanding not just keyword or exact‑match filters.

Previously, basic matching could incorrectly flag many fully compliant domains for manual review, slowing activation and creating friction for investors. Our new approach reduces unnecessary flags so more clean listings go live without delay, helping you list and sell faster.

Here’s how it works:

• Context‑aware analysis: The AI evaluates domain context (use intent, terminology, and potential brand references) rather than relying solely on simple keyword matches.
• Smarter routing: Clearly compliant listings are auto‑approved; edge cases go to our specialists with an explanation to speed decisions.

Why it matters:

• Shorter time‑to‑market: Fewer manual reviews mean faster activation for compliant domains.
• Healthier marketplace: Faster reviews put your domain in front of buyers sooner.

What’s Next?

Our goal is to empower every Afternic seller – whether you’re managing one domain or thousands – with flexible tools, actionable insights, and a world-class sales experience.

As always, your feedback drives our roadmap. Have suggestions or ideas for what you’d like to see next? Let us know at domaincommunity@godaddy.com.

Stay tuned for more updates – and happy selling!