Q:
Our father, may Allah have mercy on him, passed away two months ago and left us an estate consisting of 31.000 Saudi riyals and around 80 sheep. He was indebted to
the Real Estate Bank with 240.000 SR. We have twenty outstanding loan installments and until this day, the Bank did not ask for them. My father left behind a wife, eleven minor children and eight adults, males and females. We contacted the Real Estate Fund which requested that we pay five (Part No. 11; Page No. 296) installments which are the equivalent of 48, 000 SR and requested that the rest of the installments be paid at another time. I, in my capacity as a beneficiary and as being the eldest of my siblings and their agent, signed a declaration of obligation to pay the installments in their due time. After paying off 48.000 SR and signing the declaration of obligation, does this absolve my father of the debt which will become a financial obligation that I have to pay? Please take into account that the house my father left is uninhabited and we do not benefit from it. Kindly accept our deep thanks.
A:
If the matter is as mentioned in the question, and you took it upon yourself to pay off your father's debt on behalf of your siblings, you will be rewarded for this In sha’a-Allah (if Allah wills). However, your father is not absolved of the financial obligation upon him except after the debt is paid off. We ask Allah to help you.May Allah grant us success. May peace and blessings be upon our Prophet Muhammad, his family, and Companions.