Isloo replied on Wednesday, June 29, 2011 09:49 AM
As per my limited knowledge, the answers are given for each question.
1. Where your parents live, no zakat is payable. If they are paying you rent, zakat is deduible on whatever remains from that rental income after expenses.
2. From your three plots, if you have decided to build on one, its not zakat-deductable as its no more an investment property. If you decide to sell another and use its money for home, and your intention is 100% now, there wont be zakat on that either. The third one is zakat liable, as its investment money and will remain so.
If you change your mind about these plots, zakat is applicable on each.
3. For the plot on installments, I have limited knowledge and would like others to guide.
4. Money for Parents cannot be part of Zakat.
People may agree or disagree with what I am going to put below for further food for thought.
I have come across people in Saudia who Pay zakat only on items that are going to bring them profit, and not on items gifted to their family and are for personal use only, and that included wedding jewellery for your wife. Their arguement is: "Zakat is only deductible on "Investment Money" which gives you a return, and not on anything else."
If you intend to keep it with intention that you may sell it, its liable for zakat, but if you have given it to wife and she has no intention to sell and will keep for personal use for rest of life, its not liable for zakat.Many people on this forum will disagree to this point but please suggest what do you think is best. Also, if you have a plot and you name it for a minor and do not take anything of it till he is adult, you have no zakat to pay on it, but that also means that you are not going to take any part of it at all under your use.
Again, regaring the question of selling the plot to pay zakat, ask yourself if it makes sense to do it. I will give a real life example: A widow has 100 tola gold and she cannot do any business or work, i.e, she has not "INVESTED" it any where, she merely uses 1 tola every month for her expenses. Now, because she has not invested and does not expect a return, she should not be paying zakat, its for personal use. This gets complex when people start arguing that Gold prices increase, but its not just gold people posses, woman can posses Rupees or Dollars or anything which can decrease or increase.
Another quesion: If two people A and B are having a plot each, A buys keep it for building home only and not sell at a higher price, B buys to sell it later on a higher price, are they the same? Ofcourse not, one is expecting profit and treating it as trade commodity while other is not, so A is not liable for zakat on his plot but ofcourse, he can't reap the benefits of selling it at a higher price. If the person A built the house and lived in for 10 years, and then decides to sell it, the zakat will be applicable on the income generated. |
