Los Gatos reality TV star gets 4 years for fraud

Charles “Todd” Hill, a former star of HGTV’s reality show “Flip It to Win It,” received a four-year jail sentence in Santa Clara County on Tuesday and was ordered to repay nearly $10 million for committing real estate and financial fraud against 11 victims.

Hill, a 58-year-old resident of Los Gatos with a background in home flipping, was convicted of laundering millions of dollars meant for extravagant renovations to pay for a leased San Francisco apartment, luxury hotels, vacations and high-end vehicles, prosecutors said. The Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office added an aggravated white-collar crime enhancement against him.

“Some see the huge amount of money in Silicon Valley real estate as a business opportunity. Others, unfortunately, see it as a criminal opportunity — and we will hold those people strictly accountable,” District Attorney Jeff Rosen said in a statement.

Hill, known on the show as “Mr. Flip It,” was indicted in November 2019. He pleaded guilty in September 2023 to grand theft charges and acknowledged the white-collar crime enhancements. He was ordered to repay $9,402,678.43 in restitution and placed on 10 years probation.

His fraudulent activities included diverting construction funds for personal use, running a Ponzi scheme with investors’ money for a lavish lifestyle and falsifying financial records to obtain loans.

One victim discovered a property, for which they had provided $250,000 for remodeling, left as a burnt shell. Victims testified at the hearing about continuing financial and professional repercussions from Hill’s actions.