A presentation of the Did You Know Series
Did you know…The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has an abundance of free publications that you can order to help you with your credit? They offer publications on topics such as: How to Build a Better Credit Report, Understanding Your Credit Scores, How to Deal With Debt, Understanding Credit-Related Scams and many more!
In order to know exactly which publications you might want, you should start by ordering free copies of each of your credit reports from www.annualcreditreport.com. You will have immediate access to them through this website. You can also get them by calling 877-322-8228 and utilize the automated system to order your reports. They will then be mailed to you.
Once you have your reports from each bureau you should go over them to see if there are any issues. It is always a good idea to carefully scrutinize your reports to make sure that all the credit being reported is correct. Be sure to review all the personal information listed as well to ensure that the credit bureaus have all the correct information for you. Studies have shown that over 42 million people have some sort of error on their credit files. It is very common to see incorrect names on credit reports or addresses where you have never lived, so be sure to pay attention and go over them carefully.
After you have gone over your reports you can then determine what publications the FTC offers that might be of value to you. You can go to their website https://bulkorder.ftc.gov or to www.advcredit.com/consumer-credit/ to peruse what they have to offer. All of the publications are free and can offer a lot of help with a number of different issues.
Information regarding credit, credit scores and debt can be confusing. The publications offered by the FTC can help to take away a lot of questions and confusion…best of all, it doesn’t cost a thing!