LSbroker · Broker guide

Reading the Portfolio Offset numbers

What every figure on the results panel means, why it's accurate, and the exact line to say when you're explaining it to a client.

The foundation

Interest is calculated daily — and charged monthly

Most online calculators are wrong because they work interest out monthly. Real lenders calculate it daily, on what you actually owe that day, then charge the total once a month — exactly as it shows on a bank statement. This calculator uses that same daily method.

Daily interest=(loan balance − offset) × rate ÷ 365

So every dollar sitting in the offset is a dollar the client isn't paying interest on — every single day, not just at month end.

Worked example · sample file, month one

Split 1 balance $544,181 − offset $31,600 = $512,581 actually charged interest. That's $88.05 a day. The offset alone saves about $163 in the first month — and that saving grows every month as the offset grows.

"This isn't a rough estimate. It works your interest out the same way your lender does — daily, on your balance minus whatever's in your offset."

Each number on screen

What the panel is telling you

Effective payoff — “Offset covers full balance”

As savings build in the offset, one day it equals what's left on the loan. From that moment the client could wipe the loan by emptying the offset — so they're effectively debt-free, even though the loan account still shows a balance.

"You don't have to actually pay it off. The day your offset matches the loan, you're debt-free in every way that matters — and you keep the cash, with full access."

Interest saved

The same loan, compared two ways: run the standard way (principal & interest over the full term, no offset, no extra repayments) versus the client's plan. Both sides use the daily method, so the difference is purely what the offset and repayment strategy saves.

Offset redirect — the extra benefit

The clever part, and the bit worth selling. Once a loan's offset fully covers it, that money would normally just sit idle. Instead the calculator redirects the surplus — plus the repayment that loan no longer needs — into the next loan's offset (the next split on the same property first, then the next property). It models exactly how you'd coach a disciplined client to recycle cashflow across a portfolio.

"Having an offset is good. Using it across your whole portfolio is what saves the big money — once one loan's covered, we point that surplus at the next one so nothing sits idle."

How the savings add up

Two figures, one of them part of the other

There are two saving numbers on screen. They aren't two separate claims — the redirect benefit is a slice of the total:

SplitLoanEffective payoffInterest saved
1 · Property 1$544,18112 yr 6 mo$438,410
2 · Property 1$107,00013 yr 10 mo$55,045
1 · Property 2$557,93018 yr 10 mo$205,128
Total interest saved$698,582

In this example the client only funds an offset on Split 1. As each loan becomes effectively debt-free, that surplus — plus the repayment it no longer needs — is redirected into the offset on the next loan (Split 2, then Split 3). Those offsets fill entirely from the redirect, so every dollar saved on Splits 2 & 3 is the offset-redirect benefit:

$438,410 + $260,173 = $698,582 Split 1's own offset  +  the offset-redirect benefit  =  total saved — and it clears all debt 4 yr 9 mo sooner

"$438k of the saving comes from Split 1's own offset. The other $260k comes from recycling that surplus into the other two loans — money that would otherwise have done nothing."

Be honest about the assumptions

What the projection assumes

Stating these builds trust — and pre-empts the “is this real?” question.

  • Rates are held constant for the projection. Real rates move; this compares strategies on a level field, it doesn't forecast rate changes.
  • Offset deposits are assumed to continue every month, as entered. The benefit depends on the client maintaining them.
  • Lender fees are included only if you add them.
  • Offset deposits land at the start of each month (a beginning-of-period assumption).
  • It's a projection to compare options — not a quote or a guarantee of the client's actual loan.

"These are projections to compare your options, not a promise. The big variable is rates, which we've held steady so we're comparing like with like."

Quick answers

Likely client questions

“Is this just a sales-gimmick number?”

No — interest is calculated daily on balance-minus-offset, the same way the lender does it.

“Do I actually have to pay the loan off early?”

No. ‘Effective payoff’ means your offset covers the balance — you stay in control of the cash and pay no further interest either way.

“What if I dip into the offset?”

The benefit scales with what's in there. Pull money out and that month's saving drops; it's your money and stays flexible — that's the point of an offset over extra repayments.

“Why does the saving keep growing late in the loan?”

Because once each loan is covered, its surplus and its old repayment get redirected to the next one — so the offset never plateaus and the last loan gets hit hardest.

Figures shown are an illustrative sample to explain the method; real client numbers will differ. The same in-context explanation appears inside the calculator under “How these numbers are worked out.” Internal broker reference — not a quote or credit assistance.