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Fatwa CenterHow to Divide Indivisible Property Between Heirs
Question
Assalamualaikum Brother,We are four brothers and four sisters . We have to divide our fathers property, Mother doesn’t want her share and so we are distributing her share equally between all of us. We are aware of Islamic ruling ie brothers will get the double of sisters. As we don’t have enough money for construction on own and even the area is not big enough to take out sisters share on land before giving for development. So we brothers are planning to give complete area for development and after development we are getting Five flats and one penthouse. Though we are not investing any amount during development the property value will become more after development when compared to before development .In this case is it permissible to calculate sisters share in cash on land value before development and sell one flat after development for giving sisters share or do we need to distribute the property only after development..Kindly let us know what will be best as per Islamic law.Waiting for your early reply.Jazak Allah Khair
Answer
All perfect praise be to Allah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allah, and that Muhammad 
is His slave and Messenger.
1- If your mother has renounced her share in the inheritance to all of you males and females, then giving up this right is considered as a gift from her to all of you. The method of dividing this gift is not up to you; rather, it is an obligation on your mother to be just in what she gifts. So, she either gives the male the same share as the female, or she gives the male double the share of the female: these are the two different views of the scholars on the issue of how to achieve justice between the children when gifting them.
2- The males have no right to build on the inherited land without the permission of the females, even with the intention of giving them their right afterwards. If they do that, they are transgressors and they are required to demolish what they have built.
3- Since the land is small and cannot be practically divided, then it must be sold if one of the heirs requests this, and those who refuse will be forced to sell. The jurists stated that the property that cannot be practically divided must be sold and then its price shall be divided. Shaykh Ibn Taymiyyah 
said: “Any co-owned property that is indivisible should be sold, and its price should be divided if any of the co-partners requests that. If one (of them) refuses, then he is forced to sell; some scholars of the Maaliki School of jurisprudence reported that there is a consensus regarding this ruling.” [End of quote]
4- If the heirs are forced to sell the land and some of them want to buy the share of others, then he is more deserving of buying it than stangers as Jaabir 
narrated that the Prophet said: “He who has a partner in a dwelling or a garden, it is not lawful for him to sell that until he is permitted by his partner. If he (the partner) agrees, he should go for that, and if he disapproves of that, he should abandon (the idea of selling it).” [Muslim] An-Nawawi said: “The Muslims unanimously agreed that Shuf’ah (the right of a person to buy the share of the other partner) is confirmed for the partner in the estate as long as it is not dividable.” [End of quote] The best solution in your situation is that you buy from each other.
5- It is not necessary for the validity of the sale that the price be paid in advance; rather, it is permissible that it remains as a debt in the buyer's liability, and he pays it whenever it is possible, provided that the seller agrees to postpone the payment. If the sale is concluded, then the buyer may build on the land whatever he wants.
6- The males have no right to force the females to sell their shares to them, nor do the females have the right to force the males to sell their shares to them. Rather, they agree between them, and if anyone agrees to sell to the other, then this is acceptable.
7- It is important to know, dear brother, that it is absolutely forbidden to use deception and trickery in order to take the share of the females. It is regrettable to notice what is happening in many societies, which still have some customs of Jaahiliyyah (Pre-Islamic Era of Ignorance), where the share of the female is underestimated and males use every possible means to decrease the female's share and only give her very little of it. Hence, we advise the heirs to fear Allah and give the share of the females (i.e. sisters) fully and completely, without tricking them in order to deprive them from their right. Here, we remind you of the saying of Allah (which means): {And know that Allah knows what is within yourselves, so beware of Him.} [Quran 2: 235]
For more benefit, please refer to Fataawa 387523, 309490, 123882, and 130136.
Allah knows best.
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