Minnesota Contractor Banned, Ordered to Pay $1.1M

A Minnesota court has permanently barred St. Cloud contractor Ryan Pietron and his company, Affordable Home Remodeling, from the state’s residential construction industry and ordered them to pay more than $1 million. The judgment includes $518,000 in restitution for dozens of families, $518,000 in civil penalties and $33,000 in legal costs. State officials say Pietron falsely claimed to be licensed, took payments for remodeling projects he left unfinished or never started, and used fabricated progress updates—including a forged supplier invoice—to obtain more money. Pietron also pleaded guilty to felony theft in a separate criminal case involving some of the same conduct.