From the Desk of Kenneth Moore: Get Your Credit Report

The first thing you need to understand about the credit system is that it is a system; once you learn how to operate within the system you can make the system work to benefit you. A million-dollar credit line is just like having a million dollars of cash. The beauty of the credit system is that it revolves around how well you pay your bills, not the amount of money you borrow. The principles are the same, no matter if you borrow ten thousand or ten million. Part two of this issue is a detailed plan of action that will increase your credit limit as high as you want it to be. The credit system revolves around a scoring system used by Credit Rating Agencies (CRA'S) to provide merchants with information about how responsible you are with credit. When you apply for credit, the potential lender gets your credit score from the CRA's and decides whether or not to extend credit. Currently, the scoring system is as follows:

751 to 850 Excellent 4% or less
651 to 750 Good 5% or less
551 to 650 Fair 6% or less
451 to 550 Poor 7% or less
351 to 450 Bad 8% or less
251 to 350 Very bad 9% or less

Note: The Credit Rating Agencies have adopted a new rating system that will be universally accepted by the Big 3. It is called the Vantage Score and will be set up on an academic scale.

Vantage Score Rates

901 to 990 = A Rating
801 to 900 = B Rating
701 to 800 = C Rating
601 to 700 = D Rating
502 to 600 = F Rating