Thinking about buying a home now--or in the next two years? 
Your best first step: Check your credit NOW!
Why?
1. If there are any negative credit lines on your credit report you need to know about them.
2. Once you know about derogatory credit items, you need to assess whether there are any items that will improve your credit profile if some action is taken on them.
3. There may be items that are incorrectly reported. These may be items that aren't yours. Or they may be duplicate items. Or perhaps a collection account was sold (maybe even more than once) and it appears as the original account, and appears again under the name of the entity that purchased your account. 
4. Collection accounts and charge offs can be paid off or settled which will improve their reporting status and your credit score. You may want to get the advice of an expert in deciding which accounts will impact your score the most in order to improve it.
5. Some items may be disputable. If you submit a written request for evidence of the original debt and it cannot be provided within the time frame required by the Fair Credit Reporting Act, the credit bureau is required to remove the derogatory information from your report.
6. Your credit score determines not only whether you can get a mortgage or not, but what rate, terms and programs are available to you.
7. The best time to find out about a "problem" on your credit is BEFORE you start looking for a home. No one wants to get derailed or delayed after they've fallen in love with a home.
Credit issues are by far the biggest cause of buyers' failed purchases. Check your credit NOW to set yourself up for success. This is your absolute best First Step to a successful home purchase.
Coming Soon: More "Best First Steps" to Getting Ready to Buy a Home
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