domain-monitor

Domain Monitor

Detect how soon a domain will expire and report whether it's a realistic acquisition target.

When to Use

• User asks when a specific domain expires
• User wants to know if a domain is about to drop (potentially become available)
• User says "I want example.com, can I get it?"
• User is researching a competitor's domain portfolio

Workflow

1. Call rdap_lookup first (structured dates). Fall back to whois_lookup if RDAP is unavailable for the TLD.
2. Extract the expiration date and status codes.
3. Classify:
   • > 180 days: not actionable — not worth watching yet
   • 90–180 days: distant — note it
   • 30–90 days: approaching — watch for renewal
   • 0–30 days: imminent — may drop if unrenewed
   • expired: check status codes like redemptionPeriod, pendingDelete — there's a ~75-day grace window before the domain becomes generally registrable
4. Report: domain, expiration date, days-to-expiry, current registrar, status codes, realistic assessment.

Status codes to highlight

• clientTransferProhibited / serverTransferProhibited — owner or registry locked transfers (normal for active domains)
• redemptionPeriod — expired but in grace; can still be redeemed by the old owner
• pendingDelete — final 5 days before drop
• autoRenewPeriod — auto-renewed; don't count on it dropping

Realistic assessment rules

• High-value .com domains rarely drop — someone is usually watching.
• If the domain has DNSSEC set up, it's actively maintained — low drop probability.
• If nameservers point to a parking service, it's often owned by a domainer — will be sold, not dropped.

Be honest: most "expiring" domains get renewed at the last minute.