I've got a few questions regarding domain valuations:

1) I own a bunch of domain names, but really have no idea what they are worth. I might sell some of them, but don't want to give stuff away. Who/what is a good way to get a bunch of domain names appraised? The domains are grouped by category/topic and/or geography, so one of those online tool things really doesn't work.

2) There is a domain name (currently just a parked page with a few ads) that I'd like to buy. But the name is what you might call a tier 1, class 2 name. Generic, two words, but not common. How do I go about getting a valuation of a domain I do not own? For all I know, the domain is with a few hundred dollars, or it might be $xx,xxx?

2a) If the domain valuation and/or the seller says he wants $xx,xxx - which is more than I've got in petty cash - where does one get financing for domain names? (I already asked at my bank; they were completely lost on the whole subject and wouldn't consider making a loan to buy expensive non-tangible domain names.)

thanks

There are no rules; a domain is worth what you are willing to pay.

And if a 'middle man' is involved, expect to pay double.

If the price is to high, walk away; chances are, you can buy one just as good from new at $20.00, or from ebay at, er, $20.00.

Quadrille is right here ... domains are like art or personalised plates ... they are worth as much as someone is willing to pay ... in my experience of trying to by domains, quite often the owner does not know the value and puts a figure on it anyway ... in one instance I approached them with a 'low ball' offer .... stated that I would pay this amount (1/10th of what they wanted) but it was a one time offer and it expired in 24 hours ... in this case they jumped at it.
In another situation the owner had a .com that was the name of our business and had researched enough to know who I was and was almost expecting my call. Since we had several other URL's with the same name, he knew we would really want the .com and stuck to his price ... which we had to pay.

A bit of a grey area but hope this helps?