Pawning and Mortgaging: Ruling on Restoring Ownership of Land After Long-Term Mortgage and Death of Parties

Practical Laws of Islam as per the teachings of Imam Khamenei

Pawning and Mortgaging: Ruling on Restoring Ownership of Land After Long-Term Mortgage and Death of Parties

English:

Question #1672:

A person mortgaged a plot of land to another in return for a loan. The situation continued for forty years during which both parties died. Now, the heirs of the landlord are demanding from their counterparts to return the land to them. They refused to agree to their request, claiming that they inherited the land from their father. Can the heirs of the landlord restore their right in the land?

Answer #1672:

If it is proved that the mortgagee who kept the land as collateral for the loan had the right of possessing the land in settlement of the loan, that the value of the land was either equivalent to, or less than, the amount of debt, and that it was at his disposal until he passed away, it is apparent that the land is his.

Accordingly, after his death, it should become part of his estate, where the inheritors have a right to it. If this is not the case, the land should revert to the ownership of the inheritors of the mortgagor. Thus, they should have the right to get it back. They are required, though, to pay back the money their father owes to the heirs of the mortgagee.

-Imam Khamenei, Practical Laws of Islam, Importance and Conditions of Pawning and Mortgaging