I've seen this before...
Again, it depends on what you're getting. Proprietary code written so that you can manage the site yourself is the biggest reason why a design firm might use this type of approach. But it will tie you to them and to whomever buys them if they decide to sell their business (I would ask what assurances you have that this won't happen).
Otherwise, find a designer who can do it all for you but keep you as the owner of the domain and the website. We frequently register domain names for clients (in their company name), share the log in information with them whenever asked, host their site and give them FTP access if they request it, as well as design and maintain the site.
Shop around. There are some good deals out there and you don't have to tie yourself to one company.
Maintaining creative rights is an old ad agency thing - even photographers used to maintain rights to photos taken for clients. Today, not too many people will sit still for that kind of control. When I was an advertising manager I always insisted that we own the photography and the photography was licensed to use them.
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