The Mortgage System - Qazwini

One of the issues that frequently comes up is the mortgage system. The majority of people in the US purchase their homes through the mortgage system. In Islam, it’s haram to pay and receive interest, except for taking interest from a non-muslim. Why? Because we are dealing with that person according to his faith, which allows transactions involving interest. Some scholars say it’s haram to buy a house through the mortgage system as it involves paying interest. However, Sayed Sistani offers a loophole. He says that one can apply for a loan from the bank with the intention of not ‘taking a loan’ but ‘taking a gift’. When someone takes a gift, it’s not a loan to begin with, hence there is no expectation to pay interest. There is no issue with the regular payments to the bank as it is required by law (i.e. we are compelled to pay these regular payments). Any mandatory fees that we have to pay is considered a fine and there is no issue with paying fines in Islam.