Your developer left and your app is a mess. Here is what comes next.
Time is money. Whether the previous developer ghosted, the agency dissolved, the contractor delivered shoddy work, or the team simply moved on, you now own an app you did not write. We audit first, surface what is salvageable, then take over on a flat fee. No mystery, no estimates that drift, no stretched engagement.
Audit-first · Flat-fee · Senior-led · 30-day stability window
Rescue outcome
0.7★ → 4.4★ on an inherited React Native therapy app
We took over a failing React Native healthcare app weeks before its anchor client would have walked. The previous team was off the project. We rebuilt the codebase enough to ship, cleared dual-store approval in 4 weeks, and ran biweekly crash triage to lock in stability. Per-engagement numbers from a recent rescue.
Read the full case →If any of these sound familiar, we have taken over an app like yours before
These are the situations we see most often when teams come in with an inherited mobile project.
The previous developer or agency is gone
Contractor stopped responding. Agency dissolved or pivoted. Internal developer left without finishing the handoff. You have a repository, maybe credentials, maybe not. Nobody on your current team can ship a release.
No documentation, no architectural decisions, no runbooks
The previous team did not write down why anything was built the way it was built. Onboarding a new developer takes weeks because every choice is undocumented. Re-deriving the intent slows every change.
Build and release pipeline broken or incomplete
The pipeline that the previous developer used is broken on your machines. Code-signing certificates expired. App Store Connect access locked. Play Console accounts in someone else's name. Releases are unshippable until this is sorted.
Critical credentials, accounts, or services in a former employee's name
App Store account, Play Console, Firebase, code-signing certificates, third-party SDK accounts, API keys. The previous team is the named owner. You cannot ship a release without these. We have a process for this.
Unfinished or partially-merged feature work in the codebase
Branches that were never finished. Feature flags pointing at nothing. UI states that exist in the code but were never integrated. The codebase looks larger than the app actually does because half of it is incomplete.
Security gaps, compliance issues, or licensing problems left behind
Hardcoded secrets in the repo, abandoned dependencies with known CVEs, third-party libraries used outside their license, no privacy manifest, no security review trail. The technical debt has a compliance dimension.
How a takeover actually runs
Four stages. Clear, concrete steps. Every step has a deliverable you can point to.
Paid Technical Audit
Mandatory first step. Read-only repo access. Standalone product. You walk away with a written report whether or not you move forward with the rescue.
We read the codebase, the commit history (what is left of it), the build configuration, and whatever documentation exists. We map what works, what is broken, what is missing entirely. The audit produces a severity-ranked findings list, a technical debt assessment, and a rescue plan. Five working days, fixed-fee. This is non-negotiable: rescue quotes without an audit are guesses, and guesses cost you money.
Rescue plan
We turn the audit's findings into a flat-fee rescue scope. You see the plan, the credential-transfer steps, and the dollar number before any rescue work starts.
Some takeovers need stabilization (stop the bleeding, get the release pipeline working, recover credentials). Some need rebuilding (the codebase is unworkable; the right answer is a fresh start). The audit tells you which case you are in honestly. If a rebuild is the right answer, we say so and re-scope as a Build, not a stretched rescue.
Executed takeover
Hands-on takeover. Read/write repo access, daily builds, weekly sync. We ship in the order the audit prioritized.
Recover credentials first. Get the build pipeline working. Diagnose and fix release-blocking issues. Establish a clean baseline you can ship from. Then we move into the prioritized work the audit surfaced. Daily builds to your team, weekly sync with stakeholders. We do not add feature work during the stabilization phase.
Handoff and stability window
Handoff docs to your team (or a new contractor), plus a 30-day stability window. Then you pick your next path.
Your team takes the wheel with the handoff package the previous developer never produced: operational runbooks, architectural decision records, an onboarding doc, credential ownership transferred to your control. A 30-day stability window follows handoff: we respond to anything the rescue surfaced in production. After that you pick: maintain in-house, contract someone, or graduate to a Partner retainer.
Outcomes from a recent rescue
Per-engagement numbers from a React Native healthcare therapy app rescue.
0.7★ → 4.4★
App Store rating turnaround
4 weeks
Dual-store approval after submission
$8k+
Published rescue pricing starts here
How much does a takeover cost?
Audit-first, quoted fast. Flat-fee rescue scope from the audit's findings. No estimates, no stretched engagements.
Mobile App Takeover Rescue
Starting at $8,000 · audit first, then quoted
Audit-first ($2,500 Quick Scan or $5,000 Full Audit). Flat-fee rescue scoped from the audit's findings. Deposit + milestones. 30-day stability window after handoff.
Scope is locked after the audit. If the findings show the codebase is beyond stabilization, we re-scope as a Build (rebuild) or a Partner (ongoing ownership), not a stretched rescue.