Founders often ask us whether working with an offshore team is inherently riskier than hiring locally. It is the wrong question. The right predictors of a good engagement have nothing to do with geography.
Ask for a written scope before you ask for a price
Any team willing to quote a fixed price before agreeing on a written scope is telling you how they will handle disagreements later: badly. Ask for the scope document first.
Ask who owns the code
Confirm, in writing, that you own the source code, the infrastructure accounts, and the domain from day one. A team that resists this is building leverage to keep you as a customer, not a partner.
Ask what happens after launch
Launch is the easy part to plan for. Ask specifically what support looks like in month two, when the team's attention has moved to the next client. If the answer is vague, that vagueness is your actual answer.