Avoid at All Costs – A Dangerous Mistake to Hire Frank Affatigato 

Hiring Frank Affatigato Sr. (Streamwood, Illinois | Elgin, Illinois) for a home remodel will be one of the most regrettable decisions you may ever make. While Frank initially comes across as charismatic and knowledgeable, this charm quickly gives way to a pattern of deception, manipulation, and unethical business practices. It’s important to know that Frank has a federal criminal history—he was sentenced to over seven years in prison for cocaine distribution—which sadly mirrors the way he conducts his business today.

Frank’s playbook is calculated: he targets homeowners unfamiliar with construction, offering extremely low prices to earn trust. He backs this up with handpicked referrals—primarily family members posing as satisfied clients—and often encourages prospective customers to view his “work” at his son’s home as a showcase. It’s all part of a carefully staged illusion.

Once a contract is signed—no matter how detailed or specific—it becomes meaningless. Almost immediately, Frank begins tacking on upcharges based on “misunderstood” scopes of work or verbal agreements that were never written down. He routinely blames the customer for errors in his own quoting and exhibits a total disregard for the agreed-upon budget. What started as a bargain rapidly becomes a financial trap.

Frank’s crews are comprised entirely of undocumented laborers who are not supervised properly, often don’t speak English, and are not empowered to communicate directly with the homeowner. While Frank himself is capable of high-quality craftsmanship and may briefly take on work himself to build confidence, he inevitably steps away, leaving the completion to untrained labor. Mistakes pile up. Timelines slip. Quality plummets.

He has no stable project management process and frequently shifts attention from one project to another—often convincing customers to start new work before finishing what’s already begun. This creates an endless cycle of half-completed jobs and ballooning costs. His quality is incredibly poor and he's chronically making trips to hardware stores and using subpar materials. 

His financial tactics are particularly predatory. Frank encourages the use of construction loans and routinely asks for cash payments, offering vague “discounts” on new or surprise charges. These practices are designed to mislead and misrepresent the true cost of your project until you’re in too deep to turn back.

A major additional concern: Frank has a well-known pattern of threatening and emotionally volatile behavior. When faced with scrutiny or legal accountability, he quickly becomes verbally aggressive and threatening, often launching into vulgar tirades filled with personal anecdotes from his violent past. Any attempt to assert your rights—whether through legal action or formal notice—is typically met with intimidation. If threats fail, he has been known to escalate matters by sending unlicensed or shady debt collectors after the very people he owes. This tactic is both unethical and legally questionable and reinforces the dangerous pattern of manipulation and retaliation that surrounds his business dealings.

Another red flag: Frank has a documented history of chronically changing his business name and location—a tactic often used to distance himself from bad reviews or legal trouble. He has operated in both DuPage and Cook Counties. His prior business address in Streamwood, IL (Cook County) was listed under New Look Builder and Remodeling, LLC. It is highly likely that the current entity, Frank Affatigato d/b/a New Look Builder and Remodeling, LLC, is being used to disassociate from the Streamwood version of the company. This kind of inconsistency in business registration is a major warning sign.

If you’re reading this, take it as a serious caution: do not be fooled by charm, low prices, or smooth-talking referrals. Frank Affatigato is not a reliable contractor. His approach is dishonest, exploitative, and ultimately destructive—to your home, your budget, and your peace of mind.

Links to his criminal history


Carpentersville man nabbed in drug bust - August 17, 2007 Daily Herald
A Carpentersville man accused of being the leader of a wholesale drug ring operating in the western suburbs was arrested by the FBI Friday morning.
Frank Affatigato, 45, of 3105 Hawthorn Hill Lane, was charged with violation of federal drug laws, specifically, possession of a controlled substance with intent to deliver, according to the FBI. Affatigato was scheduled to appear at a hearing Friday afternoon at the U.S. District Court in Chicago.
The others who were arrested on the same charges by the FBI were Thomas Francissen, 38, of 2821 Waterfront Ave., Algonquin; Theodore Q. Mitchell Jr., 37, of 289 Monarch Drive, Streamwood; John M. Payne, 45, of 1710 Monticello Road, Hoffman Estates; and Donald O. Reed Jr., 45, of 1455 E. Evergreen Court, Palatine. Three other Chicago men were arrested and another Chicago man is being sought in a nationwide manhunt. "About 3½ kilos were purchased in the past year by the investigators from members of the ring, which primarily dealt in cocaine, but some marijuana also was purchased," said Special Agent Ross Rice of the FBI. "These guys were not your street-level dealers; they were the wholesalers who sold the drugs to the dealers." Purchases of drugs were made by undercover agents over the past year, and electronic and physical surveillance was used, Rice said. The charges against the eight men were filed by U.S. Attorney Patrick J. Fitzgerald. The men could face up to life in prison if they are convicted of these charges. The Carpentersville Police Department was one of six agencies involved in the investigation.