My husband and I have not had the best track record when it comes to credit.  In the past we have had a huge amount, and this has really hurt us, we were having a hard time getting a good loan to buy a house.  In the past few years we have really tried hard to get this debt lowered, and build good credit.  We recently got free credit reports to see if anything had changed.  It had, and for the better.  We are excited, because we think we will be able to afford a loan for a new home.  Our future is looking up.