Always Own Your Code and Accounts
If an agency keeps your source code or server keys locked, you are renting your own business.
Many business owners only realize after paying for a website that they do not possess admin rights to their domain, cloud database, or source code. When they want to hire an in-house developer or switch providers, the old agency demands an exit fee or forces them to rebuild from scratch.
From day one, your GitHub repository, hosting server, and analytics should be registered directly under your company. When you own 100% of your digital assets, you have complete freedom to scale without vendor dependency.
Rule: Never sign a contract where the agency owns your repository, domain, or hosting accounts.