know about credit bureau reporting

Credit bureaus store a history of your financial transactions.

• Prospective lenders review your credit history when they consider lending you money through a mortgage, car loan, credit card, some types of education loans, etc. Some employers and landlords also check your credit history when hiring or deciding to rent to you.
• Lenders report the existence and status of your loans to national credit bureaus each month. If you are late with payments, it may affect your ability to receive future loans (or mean you end up with very high interest rates on mortgages, car loans, and credit cards).

If you are a resident of the state of Vermont, you are entitled to one free credit report from each bureau each year. Contact all three of the major credit bureaus to request a report, as each may have different information about you:

Experian
PO Box 2002 Allen TX 75013
1-888-397-3742

TransUnion
PO Box 1370 Buffalo NY 14231
1-800-632-1765

Equifax
PO Box 740243 Atlanta GA 30374
1-800-685-1111

Check out the Consumer Credit Counseling Service for help in managing your debts and credit cards.