Since I have some time off, I was thinking that I would knock out a few of the things on my to-do list. I’m getting ready to make some job/house/finance changes and thought that I would get my “free credit report” that I keep hearing about. The government gives each person one free credit report per year. Knowing your credit report is a crucial first step in making sure your credit and finances are in good shape before applying for any loan, insurance policy or increasingly a new job.

Here is what you need to know. Don’t access any of the sites you hear on radio or TV because they are gimics. The site you need to access is http://www.annualcreditreport.com/ and this will allow you to get one free credit report every 12 months from each of the three big credit bureaus like Equifax, Experian and TransUnion. Once you access your report, you will get your three digit credit report score. The higher the score, the better the creditrating and the better interest rate you’ll get on a loan. The score will range from 300 to 900. Is it really free? Not really. The report is free but in order to get your actual score you will have to shell out 5-8 bucks. But, its worth it to have this valuable information in your hands along with your report. So the next time you have a free minute – get online and get you credit report.