The number that prices your life.
Four segments, about an hour. By the end you will know your own score, what it costs you in real dollars, and the one thing to do this week.
1.1What a credit score actually is
“What a credit score actually is” is still being recorded. About 14 minutes when it lands.
Where the bureaus came from, why your score differs between the dealer and the bank, and why it is really a debt score — not a wealth score.
1.2The five factors
“The five factors” is still being recorded. About 15 minutes when it lands.
Two of them are 65% of your score, and both are things you control starting this week. Plus the rule nobody tells you about.
1.3What it actually costs you
“What it actually costs you” is still being recorded. About 16 minutes when it lands.
The same credit card, the same car, the same house — priced for two different people. The third one is the number you will remember.
1.4Pull your report
“Pull your report” is still being recorded. About 12 minutes when it lands.
The only government-authorised site, the mistakes that cost you your free annual pull, and what to do about an error.
Do this week
- Pull your report at annualcreditreport.com — on a laptop, not a phone
- Open a card with no annual fee and a limit under $1,000
- Put one small recurring thing on it
- Set autopay to the full balance, not the minimum
- Never use more than 30% of the limit