Your credit score can have a huge effect on your life, so you need to know what it is, how it affects your every activities, and how you can improve it.

Do you want to apply for any of the following?

- a mortgage
- a car loan
- a credit card
- a job

If you’re like any normal person, you almost have to apply for these items in the course of your life. But your credit score determines whether you actually will be approved for any of them. And yes, that includes applications for employment, where increasingly, employers are looking at applicant’s credit score as a sign of reliability and trustworthiness. Sort of scary, huh?

If you haven’t recently (or at all) been over to the free annual credit report website, you need to. This is the first step in getting a handle on your credit.

But getting your credit report is just the first step in assessing your creditworthiness. Read more articles below to get a complete understanding of this all-important part of your life.