<prompt> Human: I graduated a couple years ago with about 17.5K in debt. The minimum payment was about 200 a month, but Ive been aggressively paying it off so that Im paying more into principle than interest. Ive paid most of it off already, and there is just about 1.5K left. Since I have been paying more than the minimum payment, I do not have to make any additional payments until January 2017.I currently have enough cash to pay it off. But now my question is, should I just pay off the 1.5K remaining or should I leave a small amount in the account like 10 bucks so the interest does not really affect me so that it does not close right away?I have heard that having the account open will lengthen my credit history and closing the account will get rid of the history, but Im not sure how true this statement is.Should I pay it off? Or should I leave a small amount and keep it open? What are the pros and cons of each decision?  <response>: Its doubtful that paying it off would hurt you. If this in your only type of loan, then your score could eventually drop because the credit bureaus like to see a variety of debt revolving, installment, etc.That said, youve been making consistent on time payments for a number of years and that isnt going to disappear overnight. Also, at 19 Ive managed to achieve a 700 at one time it was 770 with just credit cards and deferred student loans. So the importance of different types of debt may be overstated. I would personally pay it off. Its not worth keeping track of month in and month out. Plus, small debts like that can easily be forgotten. The last thing you want is a late payment. BTW, I noticed that you said no additional payments are due until 2017. If this is the case, it sounds like your lender didnt apply the payments you way you probably intended. I get the impression that the lender is simply holding onto your payments and applying them each month. I believe this increases the interest you pay. If your payments over the minimum had been directly applied to your balance, then you would still have a payment due every month AND the interest would be calculated off of your new, lower balance. 