Monitor your credit report regularly and make sure to dispute any report errors. Your credit score determines what loans you qualify for and what interest rate you will pay. Property Management companies will pull your credit before they rent to you and some employers will even check your credit before they hire you. Your credit score is your financial identity.

Thanks to an amendment to the Fair Credit Reporting Act each of the three major credit reporting agencies (Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion) is required to provide each consumer with a free credit report every 12 months. You can order your reports online at www.annualcreditreport.com or by calling 1-877-322-8228.

The best monitoring plan is to order your credit reports one at a time in 4 month intervals. Although the reports are not identical, this method allows allow you to examine your credit 3 times a year. Reviewing your credit portfolio regularly is crucial for combating identity theft.

After reviewing your credit report, if you find inaccurate information you want to dispute it.

You will need to compose a letter to the reporting agency to make them aware of the error. In the letter succinctly list each reporting error and why it is wrong. Include facts to support your claim as well as any receipts, letters, or pay stubs that make your case. Don't send originals, however, because you will not get them back.

The credit reporting bureau typically has 30 days to investigate the dispute. In addition to an internal investigation they will forward the dispute to the business entity that filed the potential error. If it is found to be erroneous, the credit bureau must notify the other 2 major reporting agencies as well so all files can be corrected.

Once the investigation is complete you should receive a letter with the findings as well as a new copy of your credit report if any changes were made. The credit reporting agency must also send notice of the change to any one who has requested your credit report in the past six months, but only if you request it. Don't skip this very important step.

Should the investigation rule against you and the file not be corrected, you can have a a statement of dispute attached to your credit report. That statement will be seen by anyone who sees your credit report from then on.

If you have been denied credit because you have an insufficient credit history, you can request creditors be added to your file. Some creditors (like utilities and gas card companies) don't report. If you have an account in good standing that is not on your credit report you can request to have it added.

For more info on how to protect your credit visit www.ftc.gov or call 1-877-FTC-HELP.