We are a true nation of punters. It's become a regular part of our culture, where dressing up in Olympic-themed costumes at work while mock Games with betting and sweeps are taking place through the office, is normal practice for many work places. The problem is, we're not just betting on who will win gold at the Olympics, our gambling habits seem to be getting out of control.

You can just about bet on anything these days, which is filling the pockets of betting companies across the country. Take the Olympics for example. Glenn Munsie, the NSW media manager for TAB, reportedly told one media outlet that Australians are expected to waste – I mean, spend – $10-15 million on TAB betting over the Olympics this month.

And it's not just on the traditional punts such as how many gold medals Australia will take home. For instance, you could bet on:

- What the chances were of rain at the Opening Ceremony

- Which athlete will have the most Twitter followers by the end of the Olympics

- And which athlete will post the most Tweets!

I'm not a big fan of gambling, probably because I never seem to ever win anything apart from $5 from a scratchy a couple of years ago. But I am a fan of statistics and probability. So when I read about a one in 55 million chance of winning Powerball, I can't understand why so many Australians rush out to buy lotto tickets every time a draw is up.

Here's another way to picture your chance of winning Powerball. Associate Professor of University of Queensland Peter Adams was quoted in the University's news site UQ News, that winning Powerball is: "…the statistical equivalent of placing a pin on a 42km Olympic marathon course and having it land in exactly the right spot where the prize is – that’s 55 million to one."

There is a punt that almost everyone can bet on that can almost guarantee your chance of coming out on top. It's your home loan and if you are one of the 2.5 million Australian households that have one, you are in with a likely chance of "winning" thousands of dollars by simply "betting" on your mortgage instead of your weekly lotto draw.

Ok so you're not technically "winning" a prize and you can't really "bet" on your home loan – although you can bet on the Reserve Bank's cash rate decision each month! But what you can do is save on interest and cut your loan term by adding some extra cash to your repayments each month, which would be a great win!

For example, let's say you add $10 each week (or $40 per month) to a $300,000 mortgage with a projected average interest rate of 7 percent. This would potentially result in over $31,000 in money saved and reduce the loan term by almost two years.

Another way to score big on your home loan is by comparing home loans using credible financial comparison websites like RateCity and switch to a better deal. A difference of just 10 basis points – from 6.30 percent to 6.20 percent on a $300,000 home loan – could mean a saving of $20 per month. Add that to your home loan and you could save over $13,000 over 30 years and cut the loan term by 10 months.

While I’m not saying you should avoid your office Olympic festivities and never make a punt on your favourite horse now and then, it's worth thinking about taking on the bet that you're sure to win by adding to your home loan and comparing deals online. Check out this home loan calculator to find out how much you could save.