My PM wants me to pay for the entire work bid before the work is done. What do I do?

[Amber Masterson]

One of my units needs to be repainted and have some updating done in the kitchen and bathroom. My PM has a rehab company that can do the work. I've looked over the bid and the pricing is ok. The problem is, he said "let me know when you are ready to fund it and we can get it on the schedule within a few days of that." Everything I've heard from investors is that it's a bad idea to pay a contractor up front for the work, especially when it hasn't been done yet. I don't want to fork out $7k without the work being done first. Any suggestions on how to respond to my PM? 

[Chris London]

@Amber Masterson, I suspect your PM just wants your owner account funded before he has the contractor start the work. This will ensure they are not personally stuck covering the costs when the job is done. He may not pay the contractor with those funds until the job is done.