The limit on your home-equity line of credit has been reduced, causing the amount of debt you have compared with the limit to shoot up — that’s bad news for your credit score.

If you’re a little savvy about credit, you probably know that each of us is entitled to a free copy of our credit report, once a year, from each of the three main credit-reporting agencies. You can access these easily online at annualcreditreport.com — and if you’re willing to pay a few dollars, you can get your credit score, as well.

Everyone knows the value of having a good credit score — apply for mortgages or credit cards and get the lowest interest rate possible because you have a 721 FICO Score. There are also a lot of Americans, especially in today’s economic times, who know how difficult it is to even qualify for those same mortgages and credit cards with a 521 FICO Score.

The credit score you get isn’t always the same score a lender looks at when deciding whether to give you a mortgage, credit card or auto loan.

Part of rebuilding your credit is proving that you can pay your bills on time. If your bad credit episode left you without any credit cards, you’ll have to open new ones.