How to Pay Off Your Mortgage Faster: 10 Proven Strategies

1. Make Extra Repayments (Even $50 a Fortnight)

Extra repayments go straight to your principal, reducing the balance your interest is calculated on every day. Because interest on Australian home loans is typically calculated daily on the outstanding balance, even modest extra amounts compound over time.

As an illustration, on a 30-year loan held from the start, regular extra repayments at current rates could look like this:

Illustrative only, assuming a 30-year term and the rate held constant. Your result will differ, model your own numbers below.

You don't need to find hundreds of dollars. Rounding your repayment up to the nearest $50 or $100 counts, the key is consistency. One thing to check: if part of your loan is fixed, there may be a cap on extra repayments before penalties apply. Most variable loans allow unlimited extra repayments.

Want to see the numbers for your own loan? Try our extra repayment calculator to model the impact in seconds.

2. Switch to Fortnightly or Weekly Repayments

This is one of the lowest-effort ways to cut your loan term, and it costs nothing extra day to day.

Fortnightly vs monthly repayments, why fortnightly wins: there are 26 fortnights in a year, not 24. If you pay half your monthly repayment every fortnight, you make the equivalent of 13 monthly payments a year instead of 12. MoneySmart notes this creates one full extra monthly payment annually. On a 30-year loan, that single change can save tens of thousands in interest and shave years off the term.

A common mistake to avoid: simply splitting your monthly payment in two only works if you're genuinely making 26 payments a year. Take your monthly repayment, divide by two, and pay that every fortnight, and ask your lender to confirm the setup adds up to 26 payments, not a rescheduled 12.

3. Maximise Your Offset Account

An offset account reduces the principal your interest is calculated on, dollar for dollar, every day. Most borrowers understand the basics; fewer use it strategically:

• Redirect your salary on payday. The earlier your pay lands in the offset, the more days it reduces your interest before bills go out.
• Time your lump sums. Tax returns, bonuses and windfalls should land in your offset as early as possible, not sit in a savings account earning less than your mortgage rate.
• Use it for bill smoothing. Keep spending money in the offset until the last moment and pay bills on their due date.

As an illustration, keeping an average of $30,000 in your offset on a $600,000 loan at 6.5% saves roughly $1,950 a year in interest, and at high rates, every $10,000 offset saves about $650 a year versus $250 at 2.5%.

Two cautions: not all offsets are 100% offset (some are partial), and many come with a higher rate or annual fee, so they only pay off if you keep a meaningful balance.

4. Offset vs Redraw: Which Should You Use?

Both reduce interest on your daily balance, but the structural and tax differences matter, especially if your home might become an investment one day.

For anyone who might convert their home to a rental later, offset is generally the safer choice, since redrawing can create tax-deductibility complications when a loan's purpose changes. Our full offset vs redraw guide goes deeper.

5. Make Lump Sum Contributions Early

Timing matters, and it's one of the most effective ways to pay down your home loan early. In the first 5–10 years of a loan, most of each repayment goes to interest, so extra money in those early years has the biggest impact on both your term and total interest.

As an illustration, a $10,000 lump sum in year two of a $500,000 loan at 6.2%, while keeping your normal repayments, could trim well over a year off the loan and save tens of thousands in interest. Tax refunds, bonuses, inheritances or side-hustle profits are all natural sources. Setting a modest annual “bonus repayment goal” of $2,000-$5,000 builds the habit.

6. Review Your Rate (Loyalty Doesn't Pay)

Existing borrowers often pay more than new customers at the same lender, the “loyalty tax.” Even a 0.25% reduction on a $600,000 loan saves around $1,500 a year; redirected at the loan, that compounds.

Refinancing isn't always necessary, sometimes a rate-match request is enough. Call your lender, quote a competitor's rate, and ask what they can do. If you haven't reviewed your loan in 12 months, it's worth checking the market, particularly when managing a mortgage in a high-rate environment. If a switch makes sense, see should I refinance my home loan in 2026.

7. Stop Paying for Loan Features You Don't Use

Feature-rich variable loans (offset, redraw, flexible repayments) usually carry a rate premium of around 0.10%-0.30% over basic variable loans. If your offset balance is small or you never use redraw, you may be paying for features that aren't earning their keep, a 0.20% reduction on a $500,000 loan is roughly $1,000 a year.

The test is simple: add up the annual fee plus the rate premium, and compare it to the interest you actually save through the features. If they're not covering their cost, a basic loan may be smarter. It's a conversation worth having with a broker who can compare basic versus featured loans across many lenders.

8. Consider Splitting Your Loan

A split loan divides your mortgage into a fixed portion (repayment certainty) and a variable portion (extra repayments, offset/redraw, and the benefit if rates fall). You choose the ratio, 50/50, 60/40, and so on.

It can suit borrowers who want some repayment stability while keeping the flexibility to attack the variable portion and use an offset. Watch for break costs on the fixed portion and any loss of features, a broker can help you set the ratio around your income and goals.

9. Avoid Interest-Only (If Your Goal Is to Pay Down Faster)

With an interest-only loan you pay only interest for a set period (often 1-5 years), so your balance doesn't reduce and you build no equity in that time. Repayments then jump when the principal phase begins. Interest-only has legitimate uses (notably for investors), but if your goal is to clear your home loan sooner, principal-and-interest repayments do the work. Our guide on principal and interest vs interest only compares them.

10. Automate Your Discipline and Redirect Windfalls

The strategies that work are the ones you stick to. Automating them removes the willpower:

• Set fortnightly payments so the extra annual payment happens by default.
• Round up your repayment, paying $2,900 instead of $2,847 quietly adds up over decades.
• Auto-redirect windfalls, tax returns, cashback and bonuses go straight to the offset or as an extra repayment.
• Review subscriptions, redirecting even $20-$30 a month toward the loan compounds over time.

Even one of these puts you ahead of doing nothing, you don't need to overhaul your finances overnight.

Partner With a Mortgage Broker

Most of these strategies come down to having the right loan and structure in the first place. A broker compares products across a wide panel of lenders, not just one bank's range, and helps you decide which strategies fit your situation, with full commission transparency and no cost to you as the borrower.

If you haven't reviewed your loan in 12 months or more, a second opinion costs nothing and could save you thousands. Talk to a Stryve Finance broker.

Your Action Plan for This Week

You don't need to do everything at once. Pick one, do it this week, and you're already ahead.

1. Check your current rate against what new borrowers get at your lender and across the market.
2. Switch to fortnightly payments, a 10-minute call to your lender.
3. Redirect your salary to your offset, if you have one.
4. Round up your next repayment, even to the nearest $50.
5. Run your numbers through the extra repayment calculator.
6. Book a loan review if it's been 12+ months.

Frequently Asked Questions

What's the fastest way to pay off a mortgage?

There's no single trick, the fastest results come from combining a competitive rate, regular extra repayments, an offset account used well, and fortnightly payments. Reducing your rate and making extra repayments tend to have the biggest impact.

Is it better to make extra repayments or put money in an offset account?

Both reduce the interest you pay. An offset keeps your money accessible while still reducing interest daily, which suits most people. Extra repayments (especially via redraw) can be slightly less flexible and may have tax implications if the property later becomes an investment. The right choice depends on your goals.

Does paying fortnightly really help?

Yes. Paying half your monthly repayment every fortnight results in 26 payments a year, the equivalent of 13 monthly payments instead of 12, provided your lender sets it up that way. Over a 30-year loan that can save years and tens of thousands in interest.

Should I pay off my mortgage early or invest instead?

It depends on your interest rate, risk tolerance and goals. Paying down a mortgage is a guaranteed, tax-free “return” equal to your interest rate, which is compelling at higher rates. Investing may offer more upside but carries risk. It's worth discussing with a financial adviser.

Do extra repayments really make a difference?

Yes, and more so when rates are high. Because interest is calculated daily on your balance, every extra dollar of principal reduces interest immediately, and the effect compounds over the life of the loan.

Is it worth refinancing to pay off my mortgage faster?

It can be, if a lower rate or better features outweigh the switching costs (application, valuation and any break costs). Sometimes a rate-match request to your current lender achieves a similar result without refinancing.

How can I pay down my home loan early?

The same strategies apply: make extra repayments, use an offset account, switch to fortnightly payments, and review your rate. Putting extra money in during the early years of the loan has the biggest impact, because that's when the most interest is charged.

Can I use a calculator to see how much faster I'll pay off my loan?

Yes. An extra repayment calculator lets you model how extra payments, lump sums or a different repayment frequency affect your term and total interest. Try the Stryve extra repayment calculator to run your own numbers.