The concept of credit may seem intimidating or even not worth the trouble at first glance. The risk of acquiring too much debt or the responsibility of having to make monthly payments or face severe consequences, and so forth, can make it seem like it's a better idea to just stick to cash and maybe a checking account. But the truth is that credit is an important part of giving yourself a firm foundation for financial success. In this course, you'll discover why you need credit, as well as some of the reasons why you might want credit. We'll discuss what lenders look at, including your credit history and credit scores. We'll also go over common loan types.

When you open your first line of credit, you immediately start building your credit history. But what exactly does that mean? What goes into your credit history, and how do you make sure you're building it the right way? That's what this course is all about. We'll discuss everything that gets included in your credit history, both good and bad, and who collects that data. We'll go over three different strategies for building your credit history and ensuring that it remains positive.

Learning how to read a credit report is a vital part of understanding the health of your credit as well as checking its accuracy. In this program, you'll learn about the six different sections of your credit report. This includes personal information, employer history, consumer statements, account information, public records, and inquiries. Your credit score also appears on the statement, so we'll discuss the full credit score range and what your number means on the scale. Finally, we'll talk about what to do if you find inaccurate information on your credit report.

Any time you start looking into improving your financial standing, you probably hear a lot about your credit score. Is it good, bad, or somewhere in between? And what does that even mean? In this program, we'll discuss how credit scores are calculated, the factors that go into those calculations, and how your financial activity impacts those factors. We'll also talk about financial behaviors that will ensure good credit scores.

One of the real threats of living in a society that does a lot of business without the use of physical cash is identity theft. In this course, you'll learn what identity theft is, how it's carried out, some strategies you can use to avoid it, and what to do if you think it's happened to you.

Over the course of your adult life, you'll likely take on multiple forms of debt. Starting with credit cards and student loans and graduating to auto loans and home mortgages, managing debt will likely become a big part of your life. In this course, we'll go over strategies for how to best manage debt, and we'll discuss what to do if you get in over your head.

Figuring out how to use and manage credit to your advantage can be a learning process for many. Doing your research and setting some rules for yourself as you begin using credit will help you avoid credit problems. In this program, we'll explore the common pitfalls of credit, including lacking credit history, forgetting to make payments, and spending too much, too fast. We'll also go over how to avoid these mistakes so your credit can continue to grow and improve.