The only thing worse than getting a nasty surprise is getting a nasty surprise about your finances. For instance, you check your credit score and discover it’s much lower than you anticipated. You wonder, “What went wrong?”

A credit score is either a blessing or a curse cast down upon you from the digital cloud. A score of 740 qualifies you for the best interest rate on a conventional mortgage. A score under 640 means ugly interest, and a number under 620 makes it very hard to get a mortgage at all.

Consumer credit transactions are regulated both at the Federal and the State level. While there is considerable variation among State laws governing consumer credit transactions, most are based on Federal laws and various versions of State laws covering several standard areas.

Citi Free Credit Scores will provide free credit scores to their credit card customers and the bank will begin providing these scores on a monthly basis beginning in January, 2015.

The Wal-Mart Credit Card is offered by GE Money Bank for Wal-Mart customers. Credit card benefits may include online account management and cash promotions for approved applications. Online account access includes credit card statements, payments, request for credit limit increases, and email and phone alerts.