From bartering in ancient times, to metal coinage, to paper currency, the latest stage and development in the evolution of currency is credit and credit ratings. With increasing ease and usage of the internet, and e-commerce, electronic transfers and so-called plastic currency is fast replacing cash.
The way credit works is that it is a record of your spending and borrowing habits, and is used to determine effectively, how trustworthy/dependable you are with a particular transaction, will you be likely to make good on payments, or be unable to pay on time, if indeed at all? Whilst this is a simple mechanism to protect retailers from debt and bad creditors, it can be overly harsh, catching people somewhat unfairly meaning they are unable to buy things, or buy them at such a generous rate. Therefore, it is crucial that you maintain a clean and proactive credit rating. Just as sidenote, no reputation is as bad as a negative reputation, after all, if there is no history or record of your credit transactions, how else will lenders know you are worth the risk and effort?
Bizarre as it may seem, you have to buy credit in order to get your first (crucial) step on the...