Backlink quality, anchor text, and Wayback history are the core vetting checks — see the full vetting process for that. This is the shorter checklist of dealbreakers to run once a domain has already passed the basic vet.
Previous niches don't match
Buying a tech domain with 500 backlinks from gambling sites means those links won't transfer value. Google evaluates relevance. A tech domain covered in finance/casino backlinks carries little SEO juice and may carry penalty risk.
Check Google Search Console history
If you can access previous GSC data (some sellers share it), look for manual actions or penalties. If you can't access it, ask the seller directly. Dodging the question is a red flag.
Domain age alone isn't enough
A 10-year-old domain parked at GoDaddy for 9 years has zero SEO value. Real SEO domains have active content history, clean backlinks, and consistent topical relevance. Old ≠ valuable.