http://www.annualcreditreport.com/cra/indexEveryone in the US is entitled to a free copy of your own credit report every 12 months from each of the 3 major credit bureaus (Equifax, Transunion, Experian). This site will direct you through the process for each of those 3 major companies. Some you'll be able to view online, others you may have to call or fax in a form.
In process of getting married and beginning a search for my first property, I found several mistakes on my credit report such as civil cases, liens, etc and was able to clear them up. If I had waited until I was ready to apply for mortgages, it would have taken 30-60 days to clear up and affected my interest rate and what types of mortgage products I could choose from.
I'd especially recommend this if anyone has the same name as their father (or mother, but naming daughters after the mother isn't common). My credit report orgininally had a few negative things on it because my father and I share the same first name and address (at least until after I graduated college a couple years ago).
Remember, even if there are obvious incorrect items, it may take 30-60 days to clear up, so start early. You can also tell who has done credit checks on you and what lines of credit you have open. The latter is particularly good to check regularly to protect against identity theft.
hope this helps some people..
Bill
