A. Pull your credit report and your credit scores. To get the
most comprehensive picture, be sure to obtain copies from Trans
Union, Equifax and Experience credit bureaus. Beyond this, be
sure to obtain particularly your Fico score (ranging from 300 to
850 points) which is the most commonly used by lenders to
determine whether or not they will extend credit.

FYI- Under the FAC ACT, every adult American is entitled to one
free copy of his or her credit report. You can obtain a free copy
by logging on to www.annualcreditreport.com.

B. Delve into things. Examine your files in detail, and enroll
in credit monitoring. Examining your credit files is crucial to your
credit education. Is not about just simply looking at your score,
but about the careful monitoring of your financial files, which will
show you how the financial community sees you and will give
you valuable insight into your own fiscal habits.

FYI—70% of all credit files have mistakes. So it's incumbent
upon you to check and follow-up to clear erroneous information
from your credit file that could be harming you financially.

C. Reduce debts and manage your bills wisely. Debt is
inextricably linked to your credit rating. If you are carrying large
amounts of consumer debt your Fico score will be substantially
lower because the formula used to compute it, is based on the
amount of outstanding debt versus how much credit you have
available which makes up 30% of your score. While on the other
hand the other 35% of your credit score is simply based on how
well you pay your bills on time, which is the #1 determinant
factor of you credit score.