... credit. The basic principle is to assign some rating, or score, to an individual based on the information that is known about them at the time of application. The score is then taken as indicative ... of the future behavior of the applicant; that is, the likelihood that the applicant will prove to be an acceptable risk. In general, the higher the score is, the lower the ... as collateral. Once the loan officer and loan committee are satisfied that both the loan and the proposed collateral are sound, the note and other documents that make up...