[WestCoastFunding]

Dave,

A Brand New, Unused URL with no existing website or content holds the value of its cost. Those Expired URLs or people selling on Sedo or other domain auctions that actually have value are because they generate traffic which is what people are buying. Even if the site no longer operates it still may have some value from its previous traffic and could possibly be used for other purposes or a private blog network. We are talking about a brand new url and the one in question here would probably end up making someone lose money because it could ultimately get shut down. We are not comparing an existing or older url. We are looking at a URL that is brand new. Which anyone that purchases it shouldn't spend more than $12.00 on it.

This is correct.

I'd go further: a brand new website, even if you added a ton of content quickly is going to sit in Google's sandbox for 3-6 months. So there's a process with adding value: content and backlinks.

So from an SEO perspective, the keyworks used in a URL can have value, but it takes months to get there. I'm not mad at Steve O's proposition, but the issue is: if you have to wait for up to 6 months for the url to start ranking, and the disaster loan program is no longer relevant, is it really worth it?