Debt Free Destiny

It’s the first step in addressing credit problems.  Plus, you can get your credit report for free once a year.

Despite it’s importance to your financial life, studies show that less than 10% of the population get their credit report on an annual basis.

This type of neglect can cost consumers a bundle of money, given the fact that most credit reports contain errors of some kind.

What to do? Well get your report ASAP, of course!

The first thing to understand is that there are three credit reporting agencies (Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion) and they all keep slightly different records on their reports, so to be thorough, you need to get all three of your credit reports.

The 3-in-1 Report

The easiest way to get all three together is in a 3-in-1 report.  You can get one of these reports from any of the three agencies:

Equifax>
Experian
TransUnion

or an independent sourceand the prices range from about $24 to $49, depending on what “extras” you get.  Most of the “extras” are just moneymakers for the credit reporting agencies and are not necessary to see what’s on your report.

The only “extra” I would recommend getting is your FICO score for each report.  This is typically known as your “credit score” and is used by a lot of credit grantors in deciding whether to offer you a loan.  Most credit reports with scores will show you where you fit it to the national average and what factors led to the determination of your score.

Here are links to 2 of the most common sites to get your 3-in-1 report: Credit.com and TrueCredit

Why a 3-in1 Credit Report?

The 3-in-1 reports are a convenient an easy way to see all three reports side-by-side on one page, and make it easy to identify troublesome entries on each one.

You can also get a 3-in-1 report from www.truecredit.com, which is where my wife has been getting her 3-in1 report.

Another important note:

Given the rise of identity theft, reviewing your credit report at least once a year is a good way to reveal any attempts to steal your identity.

Get Your Free Credit Report at Annualcreditreport.com

If the 3-in-1 is not in your budget, you can always opt for the free reports at www.annualcreditreport.com.  Thanks to recent federal legislation, you can get all three of your reports every year at no cost.

However, be aware that you will not get your credit score at annualcreditreport.com, only your report. The score is important to know because it’s what many lenders judge you on.

Get all the details here, as well as my review of my experience getting my reports thru the site.