Hello there, I'm Brittany and I work as a financial advisor in Los Angeles. I made this website (with the help of my husband) to provide some useful personal finance tips for those who need it. I hope you'll make good use of it ...

Why keeping track of your credit score is important

One of the most important numbers in your life is your credit score. Actually they are the three most important numbers since there are three credit reporting agencies. Your credit score is an indicator of how good a risk you are to loan money to. However these days it will have a far bigger effect on your life than just on your ability to get a loan.

The main reason that you are going to want to keep track of your credit score is because it affects your ability to borrow money & your mortgage rates. There is nothing worse than deciding that you want to buy a house only to find out that you won't be able t qualify for a mortgage because your credit score is too low. It is best to know ahead of time whether you are going to be able to qualify for a loan by knowing what your credit score is. This will save you a lot of disappointment later.

Not only does your credit score affect your ability to borrow money it also affects how much it costs you to borrow money. Most people will be able to find somebody to lend them money no matter how bad their credit is. However if you have a bad credit score you will have to pay a great deal more in interest. This amount can add up to be quite a bit of money over the course of the loan. Therefore you are going to want to make sure that you keep your credit score as good as possible.

Most people would actually be surprised at how many other things are affected by their credit score. If you go to rent an apartment they will probably check your credit score. An increasing number of employers are checking credit scores before they hire people, poor credit can prevent you from getting a job. Did you know that your credit score affects what you pay for car insurance? These days it is very easy for people to check your credit score so it is becoming more and more common as part of a regular background check. Poor credit can really cause you a lot of headaches.

One of the most important reasons to keep track of your credit score is to make sure that it is correct. Since your credit can affect so many areas of your life it is critical that you make sure that it is accurate. While determining exactly what your credit score should be will not possible if there has been a big move in your score you should find out why. In a surprising number of cases the reason is an error on your credit report. It is important that you get this corrected so that your credit score will be an accurate reflection of how good your credit actually is.