Too many SL's affecting credit score?

[cokemanj]

I just signed up for the free 30 day trial at MyFICO.com and while going through my info, it said that the total number of accounts I have may be hurting my score. I noticed that I have a total of 7 student loans (5 from WF and 2 from Firstmark) showing up as individual accounts. I know what my other, more important, negative aspects are but I was wondering how much of an effect the many SL accounts has on my score. Assuming no actual rate difference, would consolidating my SL's down to one account be worth the trouble? Thanks for your help!

[dd7]

Hey!

 

I consolidated my 10 into 1 with the feds and I still get the message from FICO that my "amount of installment loans is too high. Most people with excellent scores have less than a 20% balance owing,blah, blah, blah." So, it appears that my 1 loan is affecting my FICO.

[RyanLynch]

Hi dd7 -- The balance is what will affect your credit score the most when it comes to student loans -- not the number of accounts....

[Nemo128]

Just pay them. The affect they're going to have on your score is inevitable, focus more on paying them off and less on what it's doing to your score.