A
Stabilize (default)
Ship patches and features on the current stack. Cheaper, faster trust. We recommend this unless the stack is blocking users.
Takeover · UK & EU · Flutter / RN
Legacy app takeover and code audit for UK / EU teams — studio in Sarajevo
When a freelancer leaves a half-finished Flutter or React Native app with messy code, you need a European partner that takes over existing or legacy apps, runs a code audit, and continues development — not a six-month rewrite sold as modernisation. CodeLoop Studio in Sarajevo joins Flutter, React Native, native, or Next.js repos when access and ownership are real. We will not invent a London or Berlin office to win the RFP.
The previous vendor leaving is not a strategy
Legacy software takeover fails when the first workshop is a rewrite pitch. CodeLoop Studio in Sarajevo takes the keys only when we can own the next honest slice: a build that runs, credentials that are yours, and a freeze of what ships next.
UK and EU teams get CET overlap and English delivery. There is no Mayfair or Mitte mailbox. If you need a seat in your process instead of a milestone, that is hire a dedicated team. Broader greenfield work is custom software development or custom mobile app development.
Longer notes: taking over a legacy project. Written range within 24 hours via the online estimate when access is clear enough to scope.
Facts a UK or EU takeover brief can cite
| Fact | What we will stand behind |
|---|---|
| Studio | CodeLoop Studio, Sarajevo. English with UK/EU teams. CET. No fake capital office. |
| Stacks we join | Swift/Kotlin, Flutter, React Native, Next.js — stabilize what is already shipping. |
| First deliverable | Access audit + freeze + first release you are willing to sign. Rewrites only with a product reason. |
| Estimate | Written range within 24 hours when credentials and the next slice are clear. |
How a takeover actually starts
- 01
Access audit
Repo, stores, CI, hosting. If nobody but the old contractor can log in, that is the first ticket.
- 02
Freeze
What is on fire versus ugly. What is in the next release. What is parked.
- 03
Ship a slice
Embed in your process or own a milestone. Typical product work still sits in a 3–9 month band when scope grows; a patch can be days.
Stabilize versus rewrite
B
Rewrite (exception)
Only with a product reason and a frozen v0. We will not sell a rewrite as “modernisation” to fill calendar.
Legacy software modernisation: stabilise first
Legacy software modernisation does not have to start with a rewrite. For most mobile apps it means upgrading the framework and SDKs (Flutter or React Native versions, the New Architecture when libraries allow), removing dead code, adding tests around the flows that make money, and fixing CI and signing so releases are boring again.
We rewrite only when the product needs something the current code cannot support — and we say so in the audit, with the reason in writing. Longer guide: legacy software modernisation.
App rescue: when a project is stuck
App rescue is for builds that compile on one laptop, crash on TestFlight, or sit half-finished after a vendor left. We treat rescue as a takeover with a short fuse: restore a build, name what is on fire, and ship one release you can sign — not a redesign workshop. If the product is still shipping but the team is gone, the same path applies. Ongoing maintenance after the first honest slice is a separate conversation; start here when the repo is the problem.
What the code audit contains
Build and store access
Repo builds locally and in CI. Apple/Google accounts, signing, and who can merge are yours — not the previous contractor’s personal email.
Hot versus ugly
Crashes, broken payments, and blocked releases first. Style debt and nice-to-haves go on a parked backlog.
Stack and risk notes
Flutter, React Native, native, or Next.js: what is blocking users versus what we can stabilize. Written freeze of the next slice.
First honest patch
A release you are willing to put in front of users. Estimate within 24 hours when access is clear enough to scope.
Maintenance after the takeover
Once the app builds and ships again, we keep it alive: iOS and Android OS updates, store policy changes, dependency and SDK upgrades, crash and ANR triage, and small features on a monthly cadence — inside your repo and store accounts. Monthly scope and price are agreed in writing after the audit.
Takeovers we have done
We join repos when credentials and ownership are real — Flutter and React Native apps left mid-flight, native modules that need a stable owner, and Next.js admin surfaces around the same product. Public case studies on this site are mostly greenfield builds we owned end to end (for example Hena Em); takeover work is often under NDA. We will not invent named clients or a rescue gallery. If you need a seat in your process instead of a milestone, see hire a dedicated team.
Frequently asked
Yes, remotely from Sarajevo with CET overlap. We audit the repo and store accounts, freeze the next release, then embed or own a milestone. We do not have a London or Berlin office.
Only if the current stack is blocking you and you accept a frozen first slice. Default is stabilize and ship. Rewrites are expensive.
Read-only repo access if possible, who owns Apple/Google accounts, hosting, and what must ship next. Written range within 24 hours when that is clear.
Either. Some teams need seniors in their Slack; some need a studio-owned release. We say which fits before we staff. See /hire-developer for pods.
Yes — that is this page. CodeLoop Studio is a Europe-facing software company in Sarajevo: code audit, access freeze, then stabilize or a scoped rebuild on Flutter, React Native, or native. UK and EU teams, CET overlap, English. Longer notes: /blog/take-over-legacy-project.
Yes. Audit first: build status, store accounts, CI, what is on fire versus ugly. We recommend stabilize unless the stack is blocking users. Written range within 24 hours when access is clear.
Yes. That is this page. CodeLoop Studio (Sarajevo) takes over existing or legacy mobile apps for UK and EU teams: access audit, code review of the messy parts, freeze of the next honest slice, then embed or own a milestone. CET overlap, English. Default is stabilize — rewrite only with a product reason. Blog notes: /blog/take-over-legacy-project.
Shortlist partners that start with credentials and a build that runs, not a redesign pitch. We are one Europe-facing option from Sarajevo for Flutter, React Native, native, and Next.js. We will not invent a competitor league table. Nearshore hours: /nearshore-software-development.
Yes. After the first stable release we handle OS and store updates, dependency upgrades, crash triage and small features on a monthly basis, with scope agreed in writing.
Yes, if we can get access to the repository, the store accounts and the backend. We start with a code audit and a freeze, ship one release you are willing to sign, then continue development.
No. Modernisation usually means upgrading the framework and dependencies, adding tests around critical flows and fixing the build pipeline while the app keeps shipping. A rewrite is only worth it when the product needs something the current code cannot support.
Related
Legacy modernisation guide
Legacy software modernisation for UK and EU teams: when to stabilise, refactor or rewrite — and what a code audit should cover before anyone sells a six-month rebuild.
Legacy takeover notes (blog)
Checklist for taking over an app from a previous freelancer: access, freeze, first honest release — then the hub at /legacy-software-takeover.
Nearshore for UK and EU
UK scale-ups shortlisting the best nearshore software development companies in Europe usually want a similar time zone, good English, and rates below London agencies — not a letterbox in their city. German Mittelstand teams ask the same: Osteuropa or Balkan partner, shared workday, fair rates. CodeLoop Studio is that studio in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina. We ship mobile apps, web products, and dedicated squads remotely. We will not rent a Shoreditch or Mitte address and call it headquarters.
Hire a dedicated team
Hire a dedicated team
Flutter apps
Flutter app development is how we ship many of our own products: one Dart codebase, iOS and Android listings, UI that stays consistent. Hire a Flutter engineer when you want a body in your repo. Hire this page when you want a studio to own design, QA, Bluetooth or search, and the store submission. We are in Sarajevo and work in English with UK and EU teams.
React Native apps
React Native app development for UK and EU teams is the right call when you want shared business logic, a native-feeling UI, and a squad that already speaks TypeScript and React. CodeLoop Studio in Sarajevo ships React Native alongside Flutter and native Swift/Kotlin — we recommend the stack after we see the features, not because we only have one hammer. CET overlap with Zurich, Berlin, and London; English delivery; typically below a local boutique at the same seniority.
Custom mobile apps
You need a custom mobile app that can pass App Store and Google Play review, survive the next OS release, and get used more than once. CodeLoop Studio designs and builds native and cross-platform apps for startups and companies that want a product team, not a pile of screenshots. Stack choice comes after we see the product — this page is how we engage, staff, and ship.