Mu' meneen Brothers and Sisters,

As Salaam Aleikum wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh. (May Allah's Peace, Mercy and Blessings be upon all of you)

One of our brothers/sisters has asked this question:

ASSALAMU ALAIKUM,

MAY ALLAH (SWT)BESTOW HIS MERCY AND ENRICH YOU AND YOUR TEAM WITH MORE KNOWLEDGE WITH THE JOB YOU GUYS ARE DOING...AMEEN

MY QUESTION IS:

MUSLIM UMMAH LIVING IN NORTH AMERICA AND EUROPE, WHEN THEY PURCHASE A HOUSE THEY GOT TO PAY MORTGAGE FOR A CERTAIN PERIOD OF TIME AS AGREED.IS THAT PERMITTED?

WHEN I WAS IN U.S.A RECENTLY I TRIED TO FIND OUT WHAT ASSISTANCE I CAN GET FROM AN ISLAMIC INSTITUTION.I CME TO FIND OUT THAT ONE IS PAYING MORE WITH ISLAMIC INSTITUTION THAN A REGULAR COMMERCIAL BANK.AS A MUSLIM WHEN YOU WANT TO PURCHASE A HOUSE IN U.S.A WHAT YOU SHOULD DO TO AVOID THE WRATH OF ALLAH (SWT)? 

(There may be some grammatical and spelling errors in the above statement. The forum does not change anything from questions, comments and statements received from our readers for circulation in confidentiality.)

Answer:

Mortgage house loan interest

In the name of Allah, We praise Him, seek His help and ask for His forgiveness. Whoever Allah guides none can misguide, and whoever He allows to fall astray, none can guide them aright. We bear witness that there is none worthy of worship but Allah Alone, and we bear witness that Muhammad (saws) is His slave-servant and the seal of His Messengers.

May Allah Subhanah reward you with the best of this world and the Hereafter for your kind comments of encouragement for our humble efforts in the propagation of the Truth. If our humble and modest efforts have helped even one brother or sister get closer to Allah and His Deen of Truth, then we would consider ourselves indeed fortunate to have been given this opportunity by the Lord Most Merciful to serve in His Cause. We hope, beg, and pray the Merciful Lord accepts our humble and weak efforts, forgives us our shortcomings, and saves you, us, and all the believers from the torment of the Hell Fire. Ameen.

Your Question: MUSLIM UMMAH LIVING IN NORTH AMERICA AND EUROPE, WHEN THEY PURCHASE A HOUSE THEY GOT TO PAY MORTGAGE FOR A CERTAIN PERIOD OF TIME AS AGREED.IS THAT PERMITTED?
Allah says in the Holy Quran Chapter 2 Surah Baqarah verse 274-276:

But those who devour ‘riba’ become like the one whom Shaitaan has bewitched and maddened by his touch. They have been condemned to this condition because they say, “Trade is just like ‘riba”, whereas Allah has made trade halaal and ‘riba’ haraam. Henceforth, if one abstains from taking ‘riba’ after receiving this admonition from his Lord, no legal action shall be taken against him regarding the ‘riba’ he had devoured before: his case shall ultimately go to Allah. But if one repeats the same crime even after this, he shall go to Hell, where he shall abide for ever! Allah deprives ‘riba’ of all blessing and develops charity, and Allah does not like an ungrateful, sinful person.

Allah says further in the Holy Quran Chapter 2 Surah Baqarah verse 278:

O Believers!, fear Allah and give up that ‘riba’ which is still due to you, if you are true believers. But if you do not do so, then you are warned of the declaration of war against you by Allah and His Messenger!

Allah says in the Holy Quran Chapter 4 Surah Nisa verse 161:

That they took ‘riba’, although they were forbidden. And that they devoured men’s substance wrongfully. We have prepared for those among them who reject faith a grievous punishment (of Hell Fire)!

Al-Tirmidhi Hadith 2827 Narrated by Abdullah ibn Mas'ud

Allah's Messenger (saws) said, "Even though usury be much, it leads in the end to penury."

Al-Tirmidhi Hadith 2829 Narrated by Ali ibn AbuTalib

Ali said he heard Allah's Messenger (saws) invoke the curse of Allah on those who took usury, those who paid it, those who recorded it, and those who refused to give sadaqah.

Dear and beloved brother in Islam, it is neither the taking out of a loan nor a mortgage which by itself is unlawful or prohibited in Islam; what is unconditionally and specifically and categorically prohibited and absolutely unlawful in the Sight of Allah Subhanah is the ‘interest’ element in the conventional interest-based loans and mortgages.

There is absolutely no harm in Shariah if one wishes or needs to take out a loan or a mortgage to fulfill their needs, provided the loan/mortgage is Shariah compliant and thus free of interest; but to indulge in an interest-based loan or mortgage would be absolutely against the Guidance, Commands and Boundaries of Allah Subhanah.

Your Question: I CME TO FIND OUT THAT ONE IS PAYING MORE WITH ISLAMIC INSTITUTION THAN A REGULAR COMMERCIAL BANK

It is obviously absolutely unlawful and haraam for a believer to take out a loan or mortgage from a conventional interest-based bank; but because the loans or mortgage products offered by the Islamic Banks are Shariah compliant and interest-free, it would be deemed absolutely lawful in Shariah for a believer to transact with such institutions, if indeed they wish to do so.

Paying or receiving interest is not even an option for a believer who sincerely fears Allah and the Last Day; thus if a believer, even only for comparisons sake, compares and determines that the profit charges of the Shariah compliant Islamic Banks are twice or even thrice as much as the interest charged by the conventional bank….the believer should know and be satisfied in the knowledge that the interest being charged is absolutely ‘haraam’ and unlawful, and the profit charged is permissible and ‘halaal’.

Your Question: AS A MUSLIM WHEN YOU WANT TO PURCHASE A HOUSE IN U.S.A WHAT YOU SHOULD DO TO AVOID THE WRATH OF ALLAH (SWT)? 

Dear and beloved brother, buying a house to live in this short and transitory world is definitely not an obligatory duty of a believer; but obedience to the Commands and Guidance of the Lord Most Majestic is indeed an absolutely obligatory duty of every believer who sincerely believes in Allah and the Last Day!

Thus if a believer wishes to purchase a house for himself and his family to live in, and wishes to ignite the Wrath and Anger of their Lord by dealing in the prohibited, here are his lawful options:

1. Wait with patience till Allah provides him with enough sustenance to buy a house, or
2. Rent or lease a suitable accommodation for himself and his family, or
3. Seek to get an interest-free loan from some amongst his loved ones who are blessed with abundance by their Lord, or
4. Seek to get an interest-free loan from a Shariah compliant Islamic Bank or financial institution.

But under absolutely no circumstances should a believer who sincerely fears Allah and the Last Day risk the everlasting and eternal Gardens of the Hereafter in lieu of some paltry accommodation in the life of this short and transitory world by indulging in the abomination of ‘riba’, which has specifically been declared as unlawful by Allah and His Messenger (saws)!

Whatever written of Truth and benefit is only due to Allah’s Assistance and Guidance, and whatever of error is of me alone. Allah Alone Knows Best and He is the Only Source of Strength.

Your brother and well wisher in Islam,

Burhan