What can go wrong when you buy a developed website — This is

Buying an established website comes with many risks.

Buying established websites on sites like Flippa or through a broker can be a great way to acquire a cashflow-generating business.

But it’s not without risk, and both buyers and sellers need to think regarding potential pitfalls.

Here’s an example: The buyer and seller of the resume writing site ResumeToInterviews.com are headed to court.

It’s actually the seller, Jason Batansky, who filed suit following the buyer, Ichabod Ice, LLC started making threats.

Ichabod Ice bought ResumeToInterviews.com from Batansky in 2014 for $217,500.

As stated by Ichabod Ice, there was one piece of content on the site it purchased that was copied from another site. It was forced to pay $500 to the copyright owner. But it also alleges that the site’s reputation was harmed when the copyright issue came to light, and due to issues with the seller’s SomethingAwful.com account.

This, as stated by the buyer, caused they site’s revenue to drop 60%.

Ichabod Ice (buyer) sent a demand letter Batansky (seller), demanding Batansky refund the original $217,500 plus additional money.

Batansky disagrees, of course. Following Ichabod Ice continued to threaten legal action, Batansky filed suit for Declaratory Judgment.

It’s obviously too early to tell which side is right. A case of a buyer upset since one of the risk factors actually came true? Or perhaps they have a legitimate beef, at least in part.

I recommend reviewing the court filing if you’ve thought regarding buying or selling a website. It includes the asset purchase agreement as well as why the seller states the agreement was violated.

Filing document one | Filing document two