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We earn too much for the interest-free solar loans. Can we use home equity for solar and a battery?
Bayley Clarke · Mortgage broker on the road · Last checked 11 November 2026 · 2 min read
The short answer
Yes, you can generally pull cash out of your home loan for solar and a battery, provided there's enough equity in the place. Plenty of the government help around at the moment comes with eligibility rules, and earning too much is one of the common ways to miss out.
Say the system costs $30k and it saves you $8k a year on your electricity bill. That pays for itself in around four years, and everything after that is a free lunch. Your numbers will be different, so run it on your actual bills and remember the cash out sits on your home loan, interest and all, until you pay it down.
The 60 second version, filmed from the driver's seat. The rest of this page is the detail underneath it.
How the cash out works
Cash out just means borrowing a bit more against your home, either with your current bank or by refinancing to a new one, and using the extra money for something specific. Home improvements are one of the most common reasons, and a solar and battery system fits right in there.
Most lenders are pretty relaxed about a cash out of this size when your loan stays at or under 80% of what the place is worth. A $30k amount sits well under the point where most banks start asking for quotes or invoices, although some will still want to know what it's for, and a quote from the installer never hurts. You still have to show you can afford the repayments on the bigger loan, because equity alone doesn't get you there.
Doing the payback maths properly
The rough version is simple. Cost of the system divided by what it saves you each year. $30k divided by $8k is a bit under four years, and from there you're ahead. That's a strong example though. A lot of households won't save that much a year, so pull out your last few power bills and get the installer to show you the saving on your actual usage, not a brochure.
The bit people skip is the interest. That $30k is now part of your home loan, and if you leave it there for 30 years you'll pay interest on it the whole time. The way around it is to put the cash out in its own split and throw the power bill savings at it. Pay that split down in a few years and the maths looks a lot more like the free lunch it's meant to be.
The honest bit: check what you're eligible for first
Missing out on one scheme doesn't mean you miss out on all of them. Check which rebates you're still eligible for before you work out how much to borrow, because anything that comes off the price of the system changes the number, and the official energy and state government sites are the place to check.
And if your loan is already sitting close to 80% of the property's value, a cash out may push you into mortgage insurance, which can wipe out a couple of years of savings. That's worth knowing before you sign the installer's quote.
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Next question
What does cash out mean, and what will the banks accept as a reason for my cash out?Cash out means borrowing against your home's equity. Keep the loan at or under 80% of the value, show you can afford it.
Related answers
The full guide: Refinancing with a broker The full guide: Using the equity in your home Can I pull equity out for a reno, and will the bank lend me the money for the work? How much of my equity can I actually use to fund the next property? Is it easier to borrow more from my current bank than it is to switch? Should I wait until my renovation is finished before I refinance, or do it now?Not your question? Book a call and ask it, or call 0437 189 939.