Smart Ways Mascot Owners Can Use Home Equity For Business

You can use your Mascot home equity to support your small business safely – if you keep your LVR conservative, separate the business debt clearly, and avoid turning your home loan into the business overdraft. The real risk isn’t using equity; it’s over‑leveraging and mixing purposes so you can’t unwind things when the business hits a bump.

Separating home and business loan splits helps keep your Mascot property safer.

Step 1: Work out how much equity you can safely use

First, know your numbers.

1. Estimate current value and LVR
If your Mascot apartment is worth $900,000 and your home loan is $540,000, your current LVR is:

$540,000 ÷ $900,000 = 60% LVR

Banks might let you go to 80% ($720,000). That’s $180,000 of theoretical equity.

But that doesn’t mean you should use it all for business.

2. Set a conservative ‘business LVR’ cap
For business purposes, most Mascot owners are safer keeping total debt around 70–75% LVR, even if the bank will go higher.

Using the same example at 75%:

75% of $900,000 = $675,000 ‘safe’ ceiling

So you might limit business-related equity use to around $135,000, not the full $180,000.

3. Keep a buffer above APRA minimums
Lenders must test your repayments at least 3% above the actual rate (APRA buffer). With rates still elevated (RBA cash rate has peaked above 4% in recent years), loading up to 80%+ LVR on a single Mascot property can really squeeze future borrowing.

Aim to have:

• Room for rate rises and vacancies
• Capacity to refinance if a lender tightens up