Spring forward: A good time to check credit reports

If you're like me, you've spent the last couple of days shuffling around your house or apartment changing your clocks one-by-one to reflect Daylight Savings Time. By now, even your microwave should be displaying the correct time.

Public safety officials have for years also run a successful awareness campaign which urges residents to also choose bi-annual time changes as an opportunity to test smoke detectors.

Prompted by an editorial in today's Cincinnati Enquirer, the Easy Rent Editor also proposes that fall and spring time changes are a great time to check your credit reports. May and June are popular months for Ohio's tenants to begin new rental leases, and an unexpected glitch or error on your credit report can make the process even more troublesome than apartment-hunting already is. Better to have advance notice now in March, and begin taking measures to correct erroneous information -- or pay off any debts in collection that you've forgotten.

Since the inception of the Easy Rent Editor blog, I've included in my links section a referral to www.annualcreditreport.com, which is the only online source authorized by the Federal Trade Commission to provide free credit reports. The service allows you to check your credit with each of three major credit reporting companies -- Experion, Equifax and TransUnion -- once per year.

Spending a few minutes today to verify the accuracy of the information on your credit reports can save you hassles and headaches the next time you apply to rent a new apartment, buy a car or house, or even look for a new job.