Everything We Know About HGTV Alum Charles 'Todd' Hill's Legal Woes

Former TV personality Charles "Todd" Hill was once known as "Mr. Flip It" as he showed off his real estate acumen and business talents on one of  HGTV's many fun, binge-worthy TV shows, "Flip It To Win It," back in 2014. Hill was part of one of the show's five teams of expert flippers who bought homes at auction before even looking inside and then had to turn them into dream homes to sell for a profit. Five years later, however, things went south for Hill when he was indicted in November 2019 following a lengthy investigation into allegations of fraud conducted by the Santa Clara County District Attorney's office in California.

In September 2023, Hill admitted to perpetrating a number of different financial crimes that occurred before, during, and after the filming of "Flip It To Win It." These crimes included multiple instances of fraud against several different victims, and his plea included numerous "white-collar enhancements," according to a press release issued by the DA's office. As a result, Hill was sentenced to four years in Santa Clara County Jail and was remanded into the facility's custody in April 2024.

"Some see the huge amount of money in Silicon Valley real estate as a business opportunity," District Attorney Jeff Rosen shared in his press statement. "Others, unfortunately, see it as a criminal opportunity — and we will hold those people strictly accountable." Along with his jail time, Hill was ordered to pay back a total of $9,402,678.43 in restitution to 11 victims who were defrauded by the admitted real-estate con man.

While Charles "Todd" Hill was touting himself as an expert at flipping homes, he was stealing money from lenders and business partners so he could live the kind of lavish lifestyle befitting an HGTV star. Back in 2014, the first cracks in the facade began to show when Hill was sued by his biggest financial investor, Max Keech, for taking money meant for remodeling and putting it to personal use. "I made a critical mistake not looking over his shoulder," Keech told The Mercury News amid the lawsuit.

After his arrest and indictment, Hill was convicted of grand theft, which included running a Ponzi scheme that affected 18 Silicon Valley homes. According to prosecutor Oanh Tran, Hill's crimes impacted nearly a dozen victims who lost a great deal due to his malicious and fraudulent actions. "He took money from an investor who he started a company with, [and] laundered the financial accounts, which he had complete control over," Tran told ABC News in April 2024. Tran explained that Hill then cooked the books to take out fraudulently obtained loans from hopeful investors and lenders. 

"He would take the money that was given to remodel the home and spend it on luxury cars, vacations, partying as he has stated," Tran said, "and in order to account for that, he would label it as construction costs." The DA's office detailed one such instance when an investor came to view a house that he'd given Hill $250,000 to remodel, only to find that the house was a "burnt down shell" and absolutely no work had been done on the property.