How is the estate of a residential property owned by a deceased person divided, with some of his children residing in it and others living elsewhere, and with the presence of rented apartments? Are the apartments inhabited by the children exempted on the grounds of their expenditure on them and their furnishing? And what is the ruling on a father's promise to one of his children to allocate an apartment to him before his death?

Firstly: The entire inheritance (the building, lands, and all that the father left behind) must be divided among the heirs according to Islamic law. It is forbidden for an heir to scheme to take more than their rightful share.

Secondly: Regarding the apartments inhabited by the married children: If they were owned outright and a gift from the children to the father, then they have no right to claim them. If they were a loan to the children, then they should reclaim them before the division of the inheritance. However, if the apartments were a gift from the father to the children during his lifetime, and if there was a similar gift to the other children or a specific reason for preference, then they are their property. Otherwise, it is more likely that the gift is void, and the apartments enter into the inheritance due to the father's lack of fairness among his children. "Treat your children equally in giving; if I were to prefer anyone, I would prefer women." And the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, said to Bashir ibn Sa'd, when he wanted him to witness a gift he had exclusively given to his son Nu'man: "Do not witness injustice for me."

Thirdly: The rent from the leased apartments is divided among the heirs according to their shares.

Fourthly: The apartment that the father promised to one of his sons, but died before the son inhabited it, enters into the inheritance.

It is advisable to refer to the Sharia court in case of dispute due to the seriousness and complexity of inheritance matters, and to confirm the absence of any other heir, wills, debts, or other rights taking precedence over the heirs' rights, and because the father's gift to some of his children but not others is a matter of dispute and cannot be definitively settled by a fatwa.