Speaking as a registrar for >35 years, I'd register a domain name for however long I was asked. In fact I don't recall there being an expiry date on the UK registry until it started charging a fee (i.e. Nominet took over from the naming committee). I hate to see how this has become a commercial thing. I've never charged anyone to register a domain name. But I only do it for friends now - sorry.
FWIW I deal with Nominet in the UK and TUCOWS for US domain names. At one time it was TUCOWS or Network Solutions and no one liked the vibe of Network Solutions. Anyone else is further down the food chain. TUCOWS isn't the freewheeling shareware company it was in the 1990s but it's not drifted that much and I feel it's maintains the ethics. Alas, neither Nominet nor TUCOWS (aka OpenSRS) are keen to deal with the public directly, but try to find someone they do deal with once removed. If a reseller registrar isn't allowing you you register for however many years you like, you're too far down the chain. I've heard people get on okay with the new kids like Google and GoDaddy.
