Inherited a bad website from a previous agency? Audit it before you pay for a new one
The previous developer went silent, or the agency relationship ended badly. Here's what to check in 30 minutes before deciding whether to patch it or rebuild.
You bought a business that already has a website. Or the previous developer stopped answering. Or you're simply parting ways with an agency that no longer fits. In all three cases you're facing the same question: can what you have be fixed, or is it cheaper to start over. The answer isn't a gut feeling — it's a 30-minute check.
First: who actually owns the site
Before talking design or features, check ownership. This is the most underrated part, and the most common reason a new agency walks away from a project.
- The domain — whose name and which registrar account is it under? If it sits in the old agency's account under their email, they technically control your name on the internet. Ask for the
auth codetransfer right away, whether or not you're changing the site. - Hosting and DNS records — do you have admin-level access, or just "they'll tell you if something happens"?
- Code and database access — does an exported copy exist, or does everything live only in one person's head and laptop?
- The SSL certificate — does it renew automatically, or is it a manual step nobody remembers to do?
If you can't quickly answer at least three of these, you don't own the site — you're renting it.
The 30-minute technical audit
Open the site on your phone and measure honestly:
- Load time over 3-4 seconds on mobile — that's already lost orders, not just a bad feeling.
- Broken links and forms that go nowhere. Send a test inquiry and check whether an email actually arrives.
- No mobile version that genuinely works — not "responsive in theory", but actually tested on a phone screen.
- Outdated or missing structured data — if Google and AI assistants can't parse what you sell, you don't show up where people search today.
- No sign of backups — ask directly: "where's the latest backup, and from when."
Three or four of these — the site works, but it's a risk. Most of the list — it's no longer a question of fixing it.
Fix it or rebuild it
| Signal | More likely a fix | More likely a new site |
|---|---|---|
| Domain/hosting ownership | Clear, in your hands | Unclear or with a third party |
| Code and design | Clean, understandable, documented | Old template, patch on patch |
| Speed and SEO basics | Fixable with configuration | A structural problem, not a setting |
| Integrations (payments, ERP, CRM) | Work, just need re-pointing | Missing or wired wrong |
| Cost of "one more patch" | Lower than a new site | Already higher than a new site |
That's exactly the situation we stepped into with Studio Botema — a site that didn't match the level of the brands in their portfolio, with access scattered across several old accounts. We moved everything into their own name, wired it to their internal ERP, and started clean. SG Auto was a lighter case — the site technically worked, it just wasn't generating inquiries outside business hours, so we simply built a fast new site with LocalBusiness schema and a booking form.
The regulatory detail that's easy to miss
If the site is an online store or collects personal data, check exactly where the database lives — under Bulgaria's Naredba N-18, it has to sit inside Bulgaria or the EU. Old systems from closed-down agencies rarely have a clear answer to that question, and the fine lands on you, not the former contractor.
How to move forward without losing your rankings
If you decide on a new site, the order is the same no matter where you're starting from:
- Export everything you can — content, photos, a list of URLs that actually rank in Google.
- Keep the structure of the important addresses or 301-redirect them — otherwise you lose years of SEO work over a platform change.
- Register the new hosting and domain in your own name, not the contractor's — that's the mistake that got you here in the first place.
- Run the new site in parallel, verify everything, and only then switch DNS.
Most of this applies even if you end up deciding to just patch the current site — ownership and backups matter whatever you choose.
Inherited a site and not sure where to start? Send us the link — we'll run a free 30-minute audit and tell you honestly whether to fix it or move to a custom solution built to fit.