Yes taking some equity out of your home might be wise. Even if you remortgage, rather than having a line of credit. Will give you some funds to do the repairs and perhaps some upgrades on your house and a little more wiggle room in the budget. That would enable you to get top dollar for your house if you do decide to sell.
Whatever your new salary is won't remain stagnant, so there is that. Perhaps there are also ways to make a few extra dollars on the side, notary work etc? Might not be a huge influx of money but it all adds up.
I had a notary come to my house to witness a couple of signatures, I think it was around $75-$100 for that (cant' remember exactly), his prices were based on a set fee and then additional $$ for each signature he witnessed.
It's handy to have someone who will travel locally so that the people you have witnessing documents don't have to travel to someone's office.
Anyway, just an idea.