My name is Muḥammad Aslam Waṣī. I reside in the lowest part of my house where I have opened a shop, while my wife has set up a ladies’ salon. Because of these two businesses it has become very difficult for us to live in the house and to conduct an orderly family life.
One possible solution is that I rent a house close to my present home, yet that presents two major problems. The first is that the rent will be very high, and the second is that my daughter is nearly fifteen years old; I could not feel at ease leaving her alone in another house.
A flat is for sale immediately next door to my house. I desire to purchase it, for if it becomes mine both our residential problem will be solved and our businesses can run more efficiently. I do not have the means to pay the whole price in cash, though the possibility exists to buy in instalments. For this purpose I can see no way other than securing finance from a bank.
On the one hand I fear falling into sin, and on the other I am concerned for the protection, supervision and care of my wife and daughter. I do not wish to leave my daughter alone in another dwelling, especially at an age when she needs the closeness, attention and oversight of her parents.
If I purchase this flat adjacent to my present home, it is possible to open a passage and join it to our house. In that way my wife and daughter will remain within my sight, the affairs of home and business will be better organised, and we shall be rid of the worry over accommodation.
Therefore I respectfully request you, in the light of the Qurʾān, the Sunnah and the principles of the Sharīʿah, to guide me: would it be legally permissible for me to purchase the flat adjoining my present home through bank financing in order to meet the need for housing, to safeguard and care for my wife and daughter and to improve my livelihood? I wish to avoid sin while fulfilling my domestic responsibilities in the best manner. Kindly consider my constraints and circumstances and advise which course is correct in Sharʿī terms, so that I may meet my necessities and remain safe from the displeasure of Allah, may He be exalted.
Jazākumu llāhu khayran.
The situation you have outlined concerning the accommodation of your wife and your daughter, who is approximately fifteen, shows that you intend to provide suitable housing so that domestic life and business activities may be separately and properly conducted. Your concern is commendable, and in the Sharīʿah the housing, protection and care of one’s dependants undoubtedly carry weight.
As to the legal ruling, the basic principle is that taking a loan involving ribā is ḥarām. Allah, exalted is He, says in the Qurʾān: “Allah has permitted trade and prohibited ribā” (al-Baqarah 2:275).
However, within the Sharīʿah, when there is a genuine necessity (ḍarūrah) or an acute need (ḥājah shadīdah), certain prohibited matters may be permitted to the extent of that necessity. The Qurʾān states: “Whoever is compelled, without wilfully disobeying or transgressing, incurs no sin” (al-Baqarah 2:173). The legal maxim is: “al-Ḍarūrāt tubīḥu l-maḥẓūrāt – Necessities permit the forbidden.”
Moreover, in financial matters a recognised need can be treated as a necessity when, if unmet, it would cause undue hardship and difficulty. On this basis some contemporary scholars hold that, in societies where it is genuinely difficult for Muslims to secure necessary accommodation for their families, there may be scope, in specific circumstances, to take a conventional bank loan.
In the light of the circumstances you have described, if obtaining suitable and secure housing has indeed become a pressing necessity, if leaving your nearly fifteen-year-old daughter in separate rented lodgings is not an acceptable option, and if the purchase of the adjacent flat is the only workable solution to meet this residential need, then – according to the view of those contemporary scholars – there is scope for you to resort to bank financing for this purchase.
By acquiring the flat you would not only resolve the accommodation problem; you would also be able to supervise your wife and daughter more effectively and maintain a balance between home life and business. These considerations underscore the seriousness of your stated need.
Nevertheless, such dispensation is granted solely on the basis of genuine residential necessity, not for the sake of business expansion or additional profit. The Sharʿī principle is that any concession granted by necessity is confined strictly to the extent of that necessity. Therefore the financing should be limited to the amount required to fulfil your housing need.
May Allah make matters easy for you, protect your wife and daughter, place blessing in your provision and grant you the ability to discharge the rights of your dependants in the most excellent manner.