Never Say Never(land)

Will debt collectors force Michael Jackson to beat it?

According to court papers filed this week, Jackson must pay the balance of a $24 million loan, or the Neverland Ranch, his 2,800 acre playground located northwest of Santa Barbara, Ca., will go up for auction on March 19. A source close to Jackson responded to the filing, and told CNN that the self-proclaimed “King of Pop” will fight to keep Neverland. "The financing is all being worked out," the source said. "The real estate market is very bad right now and Jackson is being affected just like many other Americans."

Certainly many other Americans are facing foreclosures and even bankruptcies. But very few of them have Arabian royalty willing to bail them out (like maybe, just maybe, Mike does). When faced with financial chaos, the best first step is to get a grip on your credit score.

Your credit score says a lot about you. Employers, landlords, and lenders have access to your rating. Having a great score is important if you ever need a loan, especially for a house or car. A low credit score means you will pay higher interest rates, often 20% or more, when you borrow money.

To check on your credit score visit www.annualcreditreport.com. There are three types of credit reports to choose from: Experian (EXPN), TransUnion and EquiFax (EFX). By law you are allowed one free copy from each bureau a year. “You should get a credit report every four months,” says Morris Armstrong, a financial planner in Danbury, Conn. “You want to check your accounts for accuracy and [to see] if other people are opening accounts in your name.”