13 Things You Need to Know About Your Finances in 2019

10. How to keep an eye on your credit score

How’s your credit? You might not know right up until you apply for a loan or a credit card — and that could be too late.

FICO credit scores are used by 90 of the 100 largest U.S. financial institutions to evaluate consumer creditworthiness, and now you can see your own score for free. Start with your credit report — request it from the three biggies, Equifax, Experian and TransUnion, by going to AnnualCreditReport.com.

Federal law requires these agencies to give consumers one free copy of their credit reports every 12 months. Scour it for mistakes and weirdness. And once you’ve pored over your credit report, find out your credit score, which ranges from 300 to a perfect 850.