Are House Mortgages Permissible?

Answered by Ustadh Tabraze Azam

Question: Assalam alaykum

Are house mortgages permissible?

Answer: Wa alaikum assalam wa rahmatullah,

Generally, mortgages from conventional, usurious banks are going to be impermissible as they stipulate the kind of increase in a loan contract which was expressly prohibited in the Qur’an.

Allah Most High says, “O believers! Fear Allah, and give up outstanding interest if you are true believers. If you do not, then beware of a war with Allah and His Messenger! But if you repent, you may retain your principal. Do no wrong and you will not be wronged.” [2.278-279]

Accordingly, you should strive to seek out a permitted alternative, ideally from an institution or bank which has a certifying board of qualified experts.

[AAOIFI Shari‘ah Standards (518); Ghawji, Kashf Shubuhat man za‘ama Hill Arbah al-Qurud al-Masrifiyya (26)]

Please also see: What Is the Difference Between a Mortgage and a Rent-To-Own? and: Are Islamic Mortgages Really Different From Conventional Mortgages? and: Debt: How It Destroys Lives, How You Can Fight It

And Allah Most High knows best.

Wassalam,
[Ustadh] Tabraze Azam

Checked and Approved by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani

Ustadh Tabraze Azam holds a BSc in Computer Science from the University of Leicester, where he also served as the President of the Islamic Society. He memorised the entire Qur’an in his hometown of Ipswich at the tender age of sixteen, and has since studied the Islamic Sciences in traditional settings in the UK, Jordan and Turkey. He is currently pursuing advanced studies in Jordan, where he is presently based with his family.