Minnesota Remodeler Is Banned for Life After Demolishing Rooms and Skipping Out

A Minnesota contractor promised homeowners he could transform their properties with extensive renovations. Instead, many say they were left with unfinished work, empty bank accounts and little to show for the tens of thousands of dollars they had handed over.

Now, Ryan David Pietron, and his company, Affordable Home Remodeling, LLC., have been permanently banned from Minnesota's residential construction industry and ordered to pay more than $1 million after a state investigation found they had defrauded dozens of homeowners out of a combined $518,000, according to the Minnesota Attorney General’s Office.

"Pietron would perform token demolition work, or none at all, before disappearing with his customers’ money," the AG's office said in a statement.

On Nov. 5, Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison announced a judgment against Pietron and the company, requiring them to pay $518,000 in restitution to victims, another $518,000 in civil penalties to the state and $33,000 to cover the attorney general's costs and legal fees.

“Pietron played fast and loose with people’s home renovation dreams and needs,” Ellison said. “He counted on people giving up and moving on. Instead, Minnesotans reported this scheme to my office, and now he’s permanently out of this business and will pay for his fraud.”

In a separate criminal case brought by Wright County Attorney’s Office, Pietron pleaded guilty on Nov. 3 to felony theft in connection with some of the same conduct that was the subject of the AG’s civil investigation.

Homeowners left with unfinished projects and thousands in losses

The Minnesota Attorney General’s Office sued Pietron and Affordable Home Remodeling in October 2025 on behalf of Minnesota homeowners who were left with unfinished renovations and losses totaling thousands of dollars.

Pietron was never licensed as a residential building contractor and was banned by the Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry from claiming to be a licensed contractor—but told customers he was licensed anyway, according to the attorney general’s office. 

In an attempt to squeeze more money out of homeowners, investigators say Pietron issued fake progress updates and forged phony invoices. 

In one case, a homeowner had hired Pietron to complete work on her kitchen in October of 2024. Nearly a year later, the homeowner was out of town and contacted Pietron to find out the status of the work.

Pietron told her that a crew was currently working on the home. But when the homeowner checked the home’s security cameras, they discovered no one had arrived at the property.

Pietron gave other excuses for the delay including that several trucks had broken down. He then disappeared from the job completely and took the homeowner’s money with him, according to the complaint.

In another case, a customer who had hired Affordable Home Remodeling waited several months for work to begin on his home, only to be given an invoice for supplies which had allegedly been ordered on the homeowner’s behalf.

But when the homeowner contacted the supplier listed on the invoice, they had no record of such items having been ordered by Affordable Home Remodeling. Pietron allegedly made off with $30,000 for work on that property that had never started.

Some of the homeowners managed to track him down and when they did, he had promised to issue them refunds but failed to do so.

Investigators identified more than 50 Minnesota homeowners who lost a combined $518,000.

How homeowners can protect themselves from renovation scams

The Minnesota Attorney General’s Office is urging homeowners to research contractors and companies before signing agreements, request important information in writing and carefully review contracts and other documents.

While hiring a licensed contractor does not guarantee a successful home improvement project, there are many protections for consumers who hire licensed contractors.

Licensed contractors are required to carry liability insurance and property damage insurance. Consumers can also use a free license lookup tool maintained by the Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry to verify whether a contractor is properly licensed.

Eligible consumers who obtain a judgment against a licensed contractor for fraudulent or dishonest conduct can recover up to $75,000 from the Contractor Recovery Fund if they are unable to collect the judgment from the contractor.