01The ITIN Owner's Manual · Part 1How to Get an ITIN: Form W-7, Step by StepIt is nine digits from the IRS, it is free, and it is a great deal smaller than whoever told you about it made it sound.9 MIN →

02Taxes · The RecordYour First Tax Return: Why Filing Is the Best Financial Move Nobody Told You AboutNobody makes you file. That is exactly why the people who do end up holding the one document every lender in this series eventually asks for.10 MIN →

03The ITIN Owner's Manual · Part 2ITIN Loans: What You Can Actually Get Without a Social Security NumberThere is no ITIN loan program — there is ordinary lending, and there are institutions willing to write your ITIN where the form expects a Social Security number.9 MIN →

04The ITIN Owner's Manual · Part 3How to Buy a House With an ITINIt is legal, it happens every month in this country, and it is harder in specific, predictable ways.9 MIN →

05Banking · Step ZeroYour First Bank Account in the US — No Social Security Number RequiredThe law requires a bank to know who you are. It does not require you to have a Social Security number — and the mattress is charging you more than you think.9 MIN →

06Remittances · The Faithful BillSending Money Home Without Giving It AwayIt is the most faithful payment in America, made every week without a contract or a reminder. It deserves the same five minutes of math you would give any other bill.8 MIN →

07Your First Year of Credit · Part 1How to Build Credit With an ITIN (and Check Your Score for Free)You do not need a Social Security number to have a credit file — you need one small account that reports, and a year of paying it on time.9 MIN →

08Score · month 1 to 18Zero to 700: An Eighteen-Month PlanThe plan a loan officer would hand their own family.10 MIN →

09The First Car · Cash or CreditYour First Car in America: Cash, Credit, and the Lots to AvoidNobody needs a Social Security number to sell you a car. The trap is not the buying — it is the financing built for people with fewer doors.9 MIN →

10Trades & BusinessBusiness Financing for Independent Contractors — With or Without an SSNNobody writes you a pay stub, so the paperwork is the whole job — here is what lenders actually need from a 1099 contractor, and which doors open with an ITIN.9 MIN →