One of the most common questions I get doesn’t start with “how much is a new website” but with “the agency isn’t replying and we need to change a price on our site”. If that sounds familiar, the good news is that a website can almost always be taken over. What matters is doing it in the right order, so you lose neither your domain nor your email.
Short answer
First secure the domain (registered to your company, with DNS access), then obtain a complete copy of the website and database, and only then move the hosting and change DNS. Send every request to the previous provider in writing and ask for a list of all logins.
Start with an inventory
Before talking to the agency, list everything your website uses. Typically:
| Item | What you need | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Domain | Registered to your company, with access to the registrar panel | Whoever controls the domain controls the website and email |
| DNS | Access to the domain’s zones | Without it you can’t point the site or email anywhere |
| Hosting | Control panel access, or at least a copy of all files and the database | This is where the site physically lives |
| Website admin | An administrator account (e.g. WordPress) | For content changes |
| Admin access to the email service | Staff addresses and old messages | |
| Google tools | Ownership of Search Console, Analytics and Business Profile | Visitor data and visibility on Google Maps |
| Licences | A list of paid themes and plugins and who they are registered to | Updates and support |
Step 1: secure the domain
The domain is the most important item. Check who it is registered to — for .ba domains in the WHOIS data or with the registrar. If it is registered to the agency or a private person, ask for it to be transferred to your company. The process for .ba domains is explained in how to register a .ba domain. Until the domain is yours, nothing else is safe.
Step 2: send a written request
Email the agency a clear list: access to the registrar and DNS, hosting, website admin and email service, a complete copy of the files and database, a list of licences and a deadline for a reply. Stay professional — most agencies hand over access when they receive a clear request. If there are unpaid invoices, settle them first; they are the most common reason for delays.
Step 3: make a complete copy
As soon as you have any access, back up all files and the database and keep the copy yourself. For WordPress that means the site folder and an SQL export of the database. Check that the copy really works by running it somewhere else — a backup nobody has tested is not a backup.
Step 4: migrate without downtime
- Set up the site on the new hosting and test it on a temporary address.
- Lower the TTL of the DNS records a day in advance so changes take effect faster.
- Change the A or CNAME record for the website and check that it works over HTTPS.
- Move email separately, with a plan for the MX records — details in business email on your own domain.
- Cancel the old hosting only once you are sure everything works and you have a copy.
Step 5: take over the Google tools
Add yourself as owner in Google Search Console, Google Analytics and your Google Business Profile, and remove the agency only once you are the owner. Otherwise you lose your visitor history and control over your listing on Google Maps.
If the agency won’t cooperate
- If you have hosting access but no admin login, an administrator account can be restored directly from the database.
- If you have no access at all but the domain is yours, the site can be rebuilt and the domain pointed to it — content can often be recovered from the publicly visible version of the site.
- If the domain isn’t yours and the agency refuses to transfer it, keep the contract, invoices and correspondence and talk to a lawyer.
How to avoid this next time
On your next project, write into the contract that the domain is registered to your company, all logins are handed over on completion, the code and content belong to you, and the provider delivers documentation. For what happens after launch, read how much website maintenance costs.
Need help taking over your website?
I help you get access, make and verify a copy of your site and migrate it without downtime. Tell me what you have and what’s missing.
Engimotive · Published October 28, 2026