There are some basic financial strategies that mostly all Americans are well aware of. You should save money for a rainy day or unexpected circumstances. You should have at least 3 months worth of living expenses saved in case you lose your job. You should plan for your retirement and ideally put about ten percent of your income toward it yearly. As for credit, you should keep debt down and credit limits up, pay your bills on time and be pretty fierce about protecting those three magic digits that make up your credit score. A crucial part of this, however, is your legally protected right to view a free credit report once a year, and not only should everyone be checking theirs, but they should use it as a tool to protect their finances and not only their credit history, but their credit future.

Your free credit report will break down your credit history into sometimes surprising detail. It logs every relevant account and every single payment. It knows your bank accounts, your credit card accounts, your loan accounts, and everything you’ve ever done with them. The first time a consumer looks at their credit report, it can be a little overwhelming. This means that the first time you look at it, you have to be especially careful to go through and understand everything that’s on there. Continue reading this post…