Credit: Hard to Live With and Hard to Live Without

If you have too much and are sinking in credit card debit, you'll agree it's hard to live with. For others, it's hard to live without - try renting a car or cashing a check out of town. Do you know what your credit report looks like? Everyone should take a look at their credit report at least every year or so, and it's pretty easy to do. There are three major credit bureaus in the United States:

Experian 1-800-682-7654

Trans Union 1-610-690-4909

Equifax 1-800-688-1111

Give one a call to find out the procedure for getting your credit report and the cost (it's nominal). When you get the report take a good look at it, and don't be surprised if there are some errors on it, such as accounts you paid off still appearing as open or accounts not belonging to you on the report. If you find an error, contact the credit bureau and go through the process of having it resolved. Remember that you have rights under the law. If you are at a dead end, I suggest you contact the local office of the Consumer Credit Counseling Service, a nonprofit organization with offices around the country.

For further help, a good reference book is The Credit Repair Kit by John Ventura. When it comes to credit, remember Proverbs 22:7 "The rich rules over the poor and the borrower becomes the lender's slave."