[Q 471] Wife Requesting a Separate Home

Question

If a woman lives with her husband’s family, and her unmarried elder brother-in-law and sister-in-law keep a lot of clutter in the home, is it her right to ask for her own place? What are the teachings on this?

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم

الجواب بعون الملك الوهاب اللهم هداية الحق والصواب

Answer

Providing accommodation for the wife is among the basic responsibilities of the husband. The term “home” here refers to a place where the woman can live according to Islamic teachings, safeguarding her dignity and privacy, and fulfilling her marital life and other affairs in peace.

If the husband provides her with a separate room within a large house, then his responsibility is fulfilled, and the wife does not have the right to demand a separate house.

However, if the husband is wealthy and is capable of arranging a separate residence, and the woman faces fights, conflicts, or other problems due to living together, then in that case, the wife can demand a separate house, and it becomes wājib (obligatory) for the husband to make such arrangements.

It is best that domestic issues are resolved mutually and peacefully, so that everyone’s rights are protected.

It is stated in Fatāwā Hindiyyah:

تجب السكنى لها عليه في بيت خال عن أهله وأهلها إلا أن تختار ذلك كذا في العيني شرح الكنز

(Al-Fatāwā al-Hindiyyah, Vol. 1, Page 556)

Mufti Amjad ‘Alī A‘ẓamī states:

“If the woman wishes to have her own house, meaning she does not want to live with her co-wife or her husband’s relatives, then if the husband gives her a dālān (portion of the house) with a door that she can lock, this is sufficient, and she cannot demand another house—provided that the husband’s relatives do not cause her harm.

As for whether there must also be a separate toilet, bathroom, and kitchen, there is detail: if the husband is wealthy, he should provide a house where these facilities are separate; however, among the poor, providing just one private room is sufficient, even if the bathroom, etc., is shared.”

(Bahār-e-Sharī‘at, Vol. 2, Page 271)

Answered by: Mubashir Attari (AskMufti Scholar)
Verified by: Mufti Sajid Attari
Translated answer
Date: 26th October 2025
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