Recent Lease to Own Policy Changes at Dan

In July, we implemented a couple of policy changes to both new and existing Lease to Own transactions. While these changes were described in Product Update #9, we didn’t explain them in enough detail. Our aim at Dan is to be transparent, and we missed the mark. For that, we’re sorry.

We heard your request for more detail, so below, we’re going to explain what these changes are, and why we made them.

Our Lease to Own payout dates changed, providing a regular and predictable schedule for sellers. With Lease to Own expected to grow thanks to integrations with GoDaddy, we want to make sure that our operations scale as Lease to Own transaction volume grows. Here’s an overview of our recent changes.

1. First Payout

The first payment received by Dan from a Lease to Own agreement will continue to payout within 1 business day. To make sure there’s no delay with this first payout, we recommend checking your payout settings in your Dan account.

2. Future Payout Schedule

When that first payout is processed, we will also tell you the day of the month that your future payouts will be scheduled, providing predictability for payouts.

This is a change from how payouts were previously handled. Now, your payout will be scheduled on one of four dates per month – the 7th, 14th, 21st or 28th - dependent on when the Lease to Own transaction is initiated, as detailed below. If a date falls on a weekend, then your payout will occur on the next business day.

Communication Changes

We also made changes to the way that we communicate with you.

• At the beginning of a Lease to Own transaction, you'll receive an email and a Dan bot message following the domain’s transfer to us, confirming your first payout will be sent within 1 business day.
• At the bottom of that message, we’ll provide your payout date for all future payouts.
• When a future monthly payout is disbursed to you, we’ll send you an email telling you that your funds are on the way.

The process for buyers to make their payment to Dan is as seamless as ever. We changed one aspect of the buyer’s Lease to Own journey with Dan, which we mentioned in Product Update #9.

Like with a mortgage or car payment, we've introduced a defined schedule for buyers, who now have 12 days to pay their instalments, giving added structure to make sure Lease to Own transactions stay on track. As usual, our team will make every effort to follow up with buyers as many times as necessary to make sure payments are collected within the 12-day window.

We know that some of you have had questions about this Lease to Own payout policy change, so we’ve covered some of the most frequently asked questions here. If you have further questions, the Dan support team is ready to answer them.

Does this apply to new and existing Lease to Own transactions?

Yes. Both new and existing Lease to Own transactions are using our new payout schedule.

Why the payout gap?

For Lease to Own transactions, we schedule payouts on one of four dates per month to help us support expected future expansion and provide predictability to sellers.

What happens if a buyer pays for the domain in full, early?

If a buyer pays all remaining instalments in full before the end of the Lease to Own term, that payout will be sent to the seller in full, as soon as it is processed.

Does the new schedule apply to all transactions?

No. This policy only applies to Lease to Own transactions.

Does Afternic follow the same payout schedule?

For Lease to Own transactions, yes, Afternic follows the same buyer and seller schedules.

What happens if my Lease to Own transaction is cancelled?

If your Lease to Own transaction has to be cancelled due to a buyer’s non-payment, we will let you know prior to your scheduled payout date.