Keep tabs on your credit.

Your credit report may affect your loan rates, credit card approvals, apartment requests, or even your job application. Reviewing credit reports also helps you catch signs of identity theft early.

Lots of websites promise credit reports for free. AnnualCreditReport.com is the only official site explicitly directed by Federal law to provide them. You are entitled to one free credit report annually from each of the major bureaus – TransUnion, Equifax and Experian. Check all three at once, or space them out every four months throughout the year to keep tabs on any new lines of credit or errors that may show up.

Visit AnnualCreditReport.com today to view your free credit reports.

Place a Freeze on Your Credit Reports

One of the best tools in the fight against identity theft is to place a freeze on your credit reports at all three major creit bureaus. A credit freeze prevents your credit report from being accessed by creditors, which keeps someone from opening new lines of credit in your name. Then, when you do need to apply for a loan, you can temporarily lift the freeze for as long as you need (pro tip: if you know which credit bureau the lender is going to run, you can lift the freeze only on that report).

Visit these sites to place a freeze on your credit reports:

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