Know the Score

A few weeks ago, I talked about your and how important that number is in your everyday life. What if your credit is less than stellar? How can you go about improving it?

Your first step, if you haven't already done it, is to get your free credit report at annualcreditreport.com. Don't be fooled by other sites that advertise — this site is the only one that's truly free. You can get reports from all three credit bureaus at one time, or you can get one at a time and spread them out throughout the year.  Each report may have slightly different information about you.

Take a close look at each of the items on the report and take the time to clear up any incorrect information about you. If there has been a negative report about you from a company and you don't think it's correct, call or write the company to get it straightened out. Write the three credit bureaus as well — get on the record that you dispute the charges.

I challenge you to get your report this week and see what it has to say about you. Please give me your comments and feedback.

Next week, I'll talk about the next steps to improving your credit.