Many sites, including the popular freecreditreport.com, offer free credit reports, but make consumers enter credit card information and eventually make them subscribe to credit monitoring services that are usually never free. Many sites do indeed offer a free credit report, but only after signing you up for a free trial of a credit monitoring service, which they begin to charge you for once the date of free subscription expires.

Credit reports, which are compilations of your credit history and credit scores, become important factors when applying for loans or buying a home or car. FACTA, which allows you to view this report for free, was created to help prevent the millions of cases of identity theft that occur yearly.

This has created a number of free credit report website scams, however, and it is important for consumers to know the truth about these websites. Annualcreditreport.com is the only place to order your government-granted credit report for free. This website does not ask for any credit card information and does not make you sign up for free trials.

So if you’re looking for your free, yearly credit report, don’t be fooled by the hundreds of scam websites. Use annualcreditreport.com and feel secure about acquiring your credit report.

Making timely payments accounts for 35 percent of your credit score. Paying your bills on time is the best way to improve your credit score and maintain good credit.

Developing a credit history is crucial in determining your credit score. If you don’t have a credit card, get one. Simply charging $20 a month and paying that off for up to a year can boost up your score substantially.

Slowly closing unused credit card accounts can up your score as well. A card you’ve held for a few years, even if unused, is better for your score than those that you’ve just obtained. Holding them and not using them is far more responsible than using them all at once and not being able to pay them off, and can enable you to slowly close them over time.

Lenders also like to see that you can manage different types of debt. From major credit cards like a Visa or MasterCard, to department store and gas station cards, as well as installment loans and student loans, balancing these different types of debt is important in balancing a good credit score.