5 ways to maximise your home loan cash back for extra $$

Whether you use the extra cash to ease some financial stress or you invest it wisely, cash backs are a nice incentive.

Cash back offers are a way for lenders to attract borrowers with money back in their accounts. There's no restrictions on how you can use the money, so getting an extra $2,000 to $4,000 to play with can be very enticing.

Cash backs aren't enough of a reason on their own to choose a home loan. But if you're looking at a few similar options and one offers a cash back, you might be leaning towards the one that gets you extra money in your pocket.

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How to use your cash back

If you get a cash back, you can absolutely stash the money away for a rainy day or use it on necessary expenses. Many borrowers have been struggling under the weight of rising mortgage repayments, so refinancing to a lower rate and getting some extra money could be really helpful.

If you're looking for other ways to use the money and maybe even get a return on it, here are some ideas:

1. Home improvements

The cashback isn't enough to fund a complete house remodelling, but it could help you with some much-needed touch-ups.

Replacing some older fixtures could even improve the value of the home.

2. Put it in your super

If you don't need the cash right now, adding your cash into your super could earn you thousands more on to your retirement balance. This depends on your current age and super balance but it's likely to be one of the best ways to use your cash back.

You could also consider other investments, but be sure to do your research and speak to a professional.

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3. Make an extra home loan repayment

Maybe the least-exciting option for a lot of people: make an extra mortgage repayment. If you made one lump sum payment of $3,000 in year 5 of your $600,000 home loan with a 5% interest rate, you'd save $7,395.55.

The earlier in your home loan journey you make that repayment, the more you'd save. The later you make it, the less significant those savings become. And the more extra repayments you can make, the better off you'll be.

4. Keep it in your offset account

If you want the interest savings but want easy access to the money, you can keep the funds in your offset account and leave them there. You'll save on the interest just like if you made an extra repayment, but you can easily use the money when you need to. Because your home loan rate will be higher than your savings rate, it'll also save you more in the long run than if the money was in a savings account.

5. Put it in a high interest savings account

If your home loan doesn't come with an offset account, you can still get some extra benefit from a high interest savings account.

Even if a $3,000 cash back was the only thing you had in your savings account, you'd make an extra $812 over the next 5 years with a 4.80% interest rate.

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6 of 42 results

Finder Score	Interest Rate p.a.	Comparison Rate p.a.	Fees	Features	Monthly Payment
Finder score 9.5 Excellent Unloan Variable Home Loan Finder Award	Finder score 9.5 Excellent	Interest Rate 5.69%	Comparison Rate 5.60%	Fees Application: $0 Ongoing: $0 p.a.	Principal & Interest20% min. equityOwner-occupier	Monthly Payment	ENDS SOON! $1,000 VISA CARD REWARD 1 Click through 2 Refinance with Unloan 3 Get your reward from Finder Ends by. T&Cs apply.	Go to site View details Compare product selectionCompare	loading
Finder score 8.9 Great IMB Budget Home Loan	Finder score 8.9 Great	Interest Rate 5.79%	Comparison Rate 5.82%	Fees Application: $449 Ongoing: $0 p.a.	Principal & Interest20% min. equityOwner-occupier	Monthly Payment	Cashback: Eligible borrowers can get up to $3,000 cashback when buying or refinancing with IMB. Loan value criteria applies. T&Cs apply.	Go to site View details Compare product selectionCompare	loading
Finder score 8.9 Great Newcastle Permanent Real Deal Home Loan	Finder score 8.9 Great	Interest Rate 5.74%	Comparison Rate 5.78%	Fees Application: $595 Ongoing: $0 p.a.	Principal & Interest20% min. equityOwner-occupier	Monthly Payment	Cashback: Eligible purchasers and refinancers can get $2,500 or $3,000 depending on loan value, as long as LVR is 80% or lower. T&Cs apply.	View details Compare product selectionCompare	loading
Finder score 9.3 Excellent Greater Bank Great Rate Discount Variable Home Loan	Finder score 9.3 Excellent	Interest Rate 5.69%	Comparison Rate 5.70%	Fees Application: $0 Ongoing: $0 p.a.	Principal & Interest-10% min. equityOwner-occupierLMI	Monthly Payment	Cashback: Eligible borrowers applying online can get up to $3,000 cashback. Other eligible refinancers and FHBs can get up to $2,500. LVR, loan value criteria and T&Cs apply.	View details Compare product selectionCompare	loading
Finder score 9 Excellent Newcastle Permanent Real Deal Home Loan	Finder score 9 Excellent	Interest Rate 5.94%	Comparison Rate 5.98%	Fees Application: $595 Ongoing: $0 p.a.	Principal & Interest20% min. equityInvestment	Monthly Payment	Cashback: Eligible purchasers and refinancers can get $2,500 or $3,000 depending on loan value, as long as LVR is 80% or lower. T&Cs apply.	View details Compare product selectionCompare	loading
Finder score 9.3 Excellent IMB Essentials Home Loan	Finder score 9.3 Excellent	Interest Rate 5.89%	Comparison Rate 6.01%	Fees Application: $449 Ongoing: $120 p.a.	Principal & Interest20% min. equityOwner-occupierOffset account	Monthly Payment	Cashback: Eligible borrowers can get up to $3,000 cashback when buying or refinancing with IMB. Loan value criteria applies. T&Cs apply.	View details Compare product selectionCompare	loading

Showing 6 of 42 results

What is Finder Score?

The Finder Score crunches 7,000 home loans across 120+ lenders. It takes into account the product's interest rate, fees and features, as well as the type of loan eg investor, variable, fixed rate - this gives you a simple score out of 10.

To provide a Score, we compare like-for-like loans. So if you're comparing the best home loans for cashback, you can see how each home loan stacks up against other home loans with the same borrower type, rate type and repayment type. We also take into consideration the amount of cashback offered when calculating the Score so you can tell if it's really worth it.

Read the full breakdown

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Written by

Rebecca Pike

Editor, Money

Rebecca Pike is Finder’s money editor, with over 7 years of experience in mortgages and personal finance. A frequent TV and radio commentator, she frequently appears on Sunrise and 7News, Today and 9News, as well as Sky News, Channel 10 and across radio and print. Rebecca previously served as Editor of Mortgage Professional Australia. She has a Master’s degree in Journalism as well as ASIC-recognised certifications in Tier 1 Generic Knowledge and Tier 2 General Advice Deposit Products, which comply with ASIC guidelines. See full bio

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Rebecca has written 300 Finder guides across topics including:

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5 ways to maximise your home loan cash back for extra $$

Whether you use the extra cash to ease some financial stress or you invest it wisely, cash backs are a nice incentive.

How to use your cash back

1. Home improvements

2. Put it in your super

3. Make an extra home loan repayment

4. Keep it in your offset account

5. Put it in a high interest savings account

Compare home loans with cash back

What is Finder Score?

Rebecca Pike

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