The Personal Experience That Inspired HGTV's Rico Leon To Create Rico To The Rescue
With the rise in home renovations shows, it seems like there's no shortage of HGTV stars that are ready and willing to help clients fix their houses. With popular series like "Farmhouse Fixer" and "Help! I Wrecked My House," the demand for professional help is at an all-time high. This is evident in the creation of another show on the channel, "Rico to the Rescue."
"Rico to the Rescue" follows host Rico Leon as he helps clients in Denver, Colorado who have been put in tough situations with contractors, either with less-than-desirable construction work or abandoned projects. The series has been met with much praise since its premiere in January 2023, with many viewers finding themselves relating to the experiences of guests on the show. Leon's parents have been stuck in the same situation with a difficult contractor, which is what inspired the HGTV star to create the show in the first place.
Leon's parents were scammed by a contractor
"Rico to the Rescue" host Rico Leon grew up in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania with a hard-working, close-knit Puerto Rican family. Leon credits his parents for teaching him his work ethic and determination, but they are also the reason that he came up with the idea for his hit show, "Rico to the Rescue."
"I'm an advocate for homeowners dealing with a contractor crisis because my own parents were taken advantage of during a renovation," he explained in an interview with Hola. "When I get a call for help, my goal is to resolve the conflict between the homeowner and the home builder and to go above and beyond to successfully complete the project."
The situation that sparked the idea was when a fire broke out in Leon's family kitchen. His parents hired a contractor to fix the damage done to the house, but the contractor took the money and abandoned the project. Now, Leon is trying to right the wrongs done to his family and so many others by creating an app that would allow for better communication between homeowners and contractors. Leon told 5280 in an interview, "It would give each party responsibilities and specify project milestones that must be hit before money gets released. I think it would go a long way in preventing problems and ensuring that projects stay on track."
Leon has made history with 'Rico to the Rescue'
"Rico to the Rescue" has been winning over fans since its first episode, but it also made waves for another reason. When the show premiered in early 2023, Leon became the first Latino host of an HGTV show. The response to his history-making debut was immense, as the host explained to TV Insider.
"Just after Season 1 the outreach I received from the Latino community was insane," he said. "I'm talking people who have been in construction for years. They wanted to start their own business and got inspired when they saw me running the show with great people working with me. Things like that were pretty phenomenal. [...] A door opened for opportunity. It has been overwhelming."
Despite the outpouring of support for the representation on "Rico to the Rescue," Leon admits that his family was not impressed by his success on HGTV. "They are very proud but are hardcore Latinos," he continued in the TV Insider interview. "They are strict. I'm like, 'Have you seen the show?' They are like, 'Make sure your credit score is good.'"