A bad contractor could not only ruin your home renovation but cost you tens if not hundreds of thousands of dollars. Don’t believe us? Just ask Rico to the Rescue’s Rico León. Rico has spent years cleaning up contractor mistakes, making homeowners feel whole again after getting ripped off, lied to, and scammed by who they thought were reputable contractors. As a contractor himself, Rico knows the red flags to spot right away to tell if a contractor will take your money and run, and he’s sharing them with us today! This episode is crucial for ANYONE who owns a home, is looking to renovate one, or is just getting started in real estate investing. Home renovations can make or break your career as a real estate investor, so knowing who can get the job done is a skill that can’t be overlooked. Rico breaks down the common problems inexperienced contractors run into, the Ponzi scheme of payments to look out for, how to create a contractor contract so you protect yourself, and the mistakes you can prevent BEFORE you hire a contractor. Plus, we’ll get into the not-so-obvious red flags that only an experienced contractor will notice, what you need to check before you hire a contractor, the milestones to set up so you don’t get ripped off, and the conversation you must have with ANY contractor before work begins. Finally, Rico leaves us with four tips to help even the most inexperienced homeowner hire the right contractor. In This Episode We Cover: Red flags that point to a shady contractor who has their eyes on your wallet Writing your contractor contract so you stay legally protected during a renovation Why you never (EVER!) pay upfront for a home renovation  What you MUST check before you hire a contractor to ensure they’re legit  The common contractor Ponzi scheme that is slowly being targeted by local governments  Expert-tested tips to hire the right contractor for your first home renovation  And So Much More! Links from the Show Find an Agent Find a Lender BiggerPockets Youtube Channel BiggerPockets Forums BiggerPockets Pro Membership BiggerPockets Bookstore BiggerPockets Bootcamps BiggerPockets Podcast BiggerPockets Merch Join BiggerPockets for FREE Learn About Real Estate, The Housing Market, and Money Management with The BiggerPockets Podcasts Get More Deals Done with The BiggerPockets Investing Tools Find a BiggerPockets Real Estate Meetup in Your Area Expand Your Investing Knowledge With the BiggerPockets Books Be a Guest on the BiggerPockets Podcast Hear Henry and James On the “On the Market” Podcast Henry's BiggerPockets Profile Henry's Instagram James' BiggerPockets Profile James' Instagram Watch "Rico to the Rescue" On HGTV Catch Rico On the Other HGTV Shows: Battle on the Mountain House Hunters: All Stars Check out more resources from this show on https://www.biggerpockets.com/blog/real-estate-916 Interested in learning more about today’s sponsors or becoming a BiggerPockets partner yourself? Email advertise@biggerpockets.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices