Back to search

How is the inheritance, represented by the house left by the father, distributed, taking into account that the sons built additions to the house with their own money, and what is the ruling on the sister refusing to build an apartment for herself in the house?

1 min readAlso available in العربية

If the father passed away leaving a wife, four sons, and four daughters, and did not leave a father, mother, grandfather, or grandmother, then the inheritance is divided according to Islamic law as follows: The wife receives one-eighth due to the existence of a lineal descendant (heir), and the remainder goes to the sons and daughters by ta'sib (residuary heirship), with the male receiving the share of two females. The house is divided into 96 shares: 12 shares for the wife, 14 shares for each son, and 7 shares for each daughter. Since physically dividing the house is difficult, it can either be sold and its price distributed, or the heirs can take turns benefiting from it, or it can be rented out and its rent distributed, or the heirs can reach an agreement. If one of the heirs demands the sale, the others are compelled to comply. As for the floors built by the sons after their father's death, it should be considered whether this was done with the permission and consent of the heirs or not. What the father intended to do before his death, concerning building for one of his daughters, does not grant her any right exceeding her rightful Islamic share.

Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026

Read the full answer on Ftawy