DNS TXT Record Now Signals Domain Is For Sale via RFC 10023
Original: A domain can now say it is for sale, in DNS
Why This Matters
Standardizes a machine-readable for-sale signal in DNS, enabling brokers and automated services to discover negotiable domains at scale.
RFC 10023 (Informational, July 2026) defines a new DNS convention: a TXT record at _for-sale.example.com signals that a domain is available for purchase without taking the site offline or replacing it with a parking page.
A new DNS convention defined by RFC 10023, registered with IANA in July 2026, allows domain owners to advertise a domain is for sale by publishing a TXT record at the _for-sale leaf node (e.g., _for-sale.example.com). The record format begins with the mandatory version tag v=FORSALE1, followed by at most one optional tag-value pair per record. Supported tags include: ftxt= for free-form human-readable text, furi= for a contact or information URI (https, mailto, or tel), fval= for an asking price (e.g., fval=EUR2500.00), and fcod= for proprietary broker codes. The key distinction from domain parking is that the site remains fully operational — the homepage continues serving, email continues flowing, and browsers never see the DNS record. The convention is explicitly designed for active domains. It fills a gap that WHOIS and RDAP do not address: those services confirm whether a name is registered, not whether it is purchasable. The intended audience is brokers and automated availability services that resolve domains anyway and can perform one extra DNS lookup. The record can be added and removed at will and carries no risk to the live site.