The landlord ­ and the tenant

ِDoes the landlord  have the right to expel the tenant after the expiration of the agreed upon period of the rent contract?

ٌYes he enjoys such right unless it was somehow stipulated that the tenant can renew the lease contract after its expiration. And this is actually what numerous countries has resorted to and became a fact imposed by the legal state of affairs, which had turned into an implicit condition between the owner and the tenant.

ِ Does the landlord have the right to raise the rental after the expiration of the first period? And should  the tenant comply with this raise?

ٌOnce again he has this right if the tenant did not specify  not raising the rental   as a condition when concluding the contract. But  if this stipulation  was implicit, as happens in so many countries, the landlord has no right of raising the rental.

ِWe have a common practice spreading nowadays where the tenant asks the landlord for a certain sum of money in exchange for leaving the leased apartment or store. Can we consider such doing as lawful?

As a matter of fact, if the tenant had the right to stay at the said place by virtue of the stipulated condition, he is then entitled to cash some compensation in exchange for ceding his right.

ِWhat is the basis of the relationship between the landlord and the tenant in the light of the Islamic jurisprudence? Is it the concluded contract between the two parties, the common norms or practice amongst people, or the law in force in each country?

 According to the Islamic law, the contract is the law that governs the contractors. Hence the contracting parties must abide by the terms of their contract in concordance with His saying : {O ye who believe! Fulfill (all) obligations} (5:1). On that account, the common practice amongst people and the law in force in each country become useless. Nevertheless, if these norms, common practice or law took the form of a generally accepted and self-evident thing to do to the extent that the rent becomes based on it without having to stipulate it in the contract; in this case, it turns into an implicit condition that is as valid as the explicit one and that is binding on both parties. In fact, that is what the Prophet (p.)   clearly expresses in his saying: “Believers respect the pledges they have undertaken”. 

ِWe have some people who rent premises for the purpose of investment, such as renting them during the season of tourism. Is the second renting (re- renting for a third party) considered lawful?

ٌThe second renting is considered effective and lawful when the first rent contract acknowledges the right of the tenant to rent the premises to visitors and tourists.

ِIs it lawful to conduct contracts of dealings (such as selling, buying, leasing, exchanging…etc­) by means of modern communication machines such as the phone, the fax, the computer… etc­? And what are the restrictions that must be observed to ensure the validity of the business transaction?

Business transactions are allowed except for selling gold with another form of gold or silver that must be governed by the condition of the actual transaction taking place. As for the restrictions regulating this issue guaranteeing its validity; well, they can be summed up in both parties expressing their commitment to the contract whether orally or in writing along with the fulfillment of the general conditions of the special dealing. It is not obligatory to have the contracting parties present in one place, or to answer in the affirmative, or the like. A contract can actually be concluded or deemed effective whenever it is provided with whatever is considered as a conventional or formal confirmation of its existence.

ِShould the money that had been paid to the broker be restituted if the selling was canceled and the contract was revoked?

This money should not be restored because the broker had earned it when he arranged the deal, completed the sale, and performed his job as expected; not to mention that the broker’s job ends by the completion of the sale and has nothing to do with what happens later, since the contract defining the broker’s relation to contractors stipulates no such condition.

ِIf the tenant had spent money on rehabilitating or fixing the leased store or the premises; is he allowed to call the landlord for the restitution of this money in case the lease contract was canceled?

ٌHe is not allowed to ask the landlord to return this money unless he had fixed the premises  upon the orders of his  landlord, on the condition that the latter had declared that these charges will be at his expense.

ِIs it allowed to lease one’s properties (such as a house or a store) to non Muslims? And should the tenant abide by the landlord’s conditions as concerns personal behavior?

ٌ Yes it is allowed as long as this does not involve any transgression or prejudice against Muslims. The tenant as well as the landlord should furthermore abide by the demands and terms of the lease contract.

ِWhat is the rule regarding  the sale of houses and stores that are still not constructed, but only planned to be executed in the future?

ٌIt is allowed, being a form of selling bizzima, meaning that the seller is committed to deliver the sold item at a certain definite time .

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