Who could do me a letter like this...

[devolution]

I need an official looking letter talking about my domains, and some sort of valuation figure on them.
I need this for a specific reason - just a letter - not a full-blown 3 million page £10,000 super duper portfolio valuation at £50 a name....
I'm wondering who exactly could produce a letter like this for me (a solicitor, accountant or notary?)

I have come up with what I want the letter to say:

"Valuation of Internet Domain Holdings of
Mr Devolution

Mr Devolution owns a total of over 500 Internet Domain Names in the United Kingdom. Since 1999, he has invested considerable time and personal funds in acquiring an impressive portfolio of generic and brandable domain names, which together form a significant value.

Examples of domains Mr Devolution owns include:

xxxx.co.uk
blah.co.uk
morexxxx.co.uk
anothertopdomain.co.uk
xxxxx.co.uk
zzzzz.co.uk

In the current market climate, each domain name listed above is worth at least £2,000. In particular, xxxx.co.uk was acquired by Mr Devolution in 2003 and is probably worth in the region of £20,000 to a business or corporation. Mr Devolution has over 500 such domains.

Mr Devolution has recently sold a small selection of his domains at the following prices:

Xxxxx - £1,750
Xxxx - £1,500
Xxxx - £1,000

Even at the conservative estimate of £500 per domain, his portfolio would be worth in excess of £250,000, but with the presence of many more domains similar to those listed above, is worth substantially more.
In addition, the type-in traffic which his portfolio receives adds further value to his holdings. It is possible that the right buyer would offer in the region of £500,000 for Mr Devolution’s entire collection of domain names.

Mr Devolution’s portfolio is an important investment for his future in the UK."

I can prove with invoices & reciepts etc. the sales of some of the names. Also evidence of recent sales of domains similar to what I own would give a based-on valuation figure.

Would an accountant or solicitor sign off such a letter for me?

[Jeewhizz]

An accountant could do it for you after they have auditted your accounts.

[rob]

I would look at getting all names regged in the name of 'devolution' moved to a real name otherwise Nominet might put a spanner in the works and you lose half your portfolio!

[admin]

Try these guys, never used them but they seem to be into domain names.

http://www.weblaw.co.uk/

[pred]

Cheers Admin,
they may come in handy one day . Hopefully not, but if Nominet keep their head up their arse, you never know! re: finecheeses
Pred

[crabfoot]

Tricky one -

I'm used to turning out letters like this for guitar valuations - but domains are leased, not owned. And I presume you want this to generate some collateral, not for insurance purposes.

If you drop dead tomorrow, your 63 Fender Stratocaster is still worth big bucks, but the domain you were going to renew the day after you died is a rather less secure asset.

I have thought about this deeply. You have two problems. The first is that there is no regulatory body specific to domain valuations - people giving information are only in a position to state an informed opinion.

The second is that, because the domains are leased assets, you need a mechanism in place to make sure that those assets are secured, ensuring that renewals will take place and challenges are defended if you are incapacitated in any way.

So, to make an evaluation you can use as collateral, you would firstly need TWO valuations from "industry experts" (referees), and a mechanism in place to ensure that your assets are protected.

You should approach your professional (eg. an accountant or lawyer) before you embark on the project, agree on the referees, and discuss the protection mechanism. That way, you can do your own legwork, and your professional only needs to summarise the results of your research.

Then you get the "letter" you want, as a summary report from a "professional", to say that the domains are worth £xxxxx and precautions have been taken against losing the rights.

You need to get the summary from a professional because the final valuation needs to be legally binding - ie, covered by that professional's Indemnity Insurance.
Lawyers and Accountants are the obvious examples, but an Insurance Consultant/Broker, Financial Consultant, Chartered Surveyor, or an Auctioneer and Valuer, are other examples of people who might have the necessary insurance in place to give you a concrete valuation, and there are more examples.

There are "Black Hat" ways of getting valuations - like offering to sell half your portfolio to one valuing firm, and paying for an appraisal valuation on the other half - then reversing the two halves when doing the same with another valuing firm. Did that make sense?

OML I'm drunk again - if this is useful, thank me, if I'm talking tripe again, smite me.

[Systreg]

Originally Posted by crabfoot

OML I'm drunk again - if this is useful, thank me, if I'm talking tripe again, smite me.

I think Devolution might have sorted this out by now, the last post before your was on 28-08-2006

[crabfoot]

Yea, brother, why has it just come to the top in my focus range?

Whatever. I appreciate your observations. You are probably right. Mayhap my concept will help someone else. Meantime, I will be dead for tax reasons until the embarrassment wears off.

[GreyWing]

I take it you have been out tonight fella?

[devolution]

Lol... I did get an accountant to sign it for me 3 years ago!