Common Everyday Cases of Interest: Difference between revisions
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→Buying an Item for Someone Else
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# If someone asks his friend to go to a place where it is cheaper to buy that item and he gives him the money in advance, it is only permissible if the giver has responsibility for the money until the sale or that the friend has no responsibility for the item on the way back. For example, if an Israeli asks his friend to buy something for him for cheaper in America and pays him in advance they need to arrange that the friend not be responsible for the money until the sale or not be responsible for the item after the purchase.<reF>Torat Ribbit 9:41. He explains that by giving the money in advance and having the buyer return him the item for that price back in the more expensive place is interest. He is giving him money and getting in return an item that is worth more than the money spent in the place where the buyer lives. If the buyer takes responsibility for the money until the sale, it isn't a loan at all but rather an agency of the friend. Alternatively, if the buyer takes responsibility for the item on the way back it is a loan but the friend isn't doing him a favor in returning the item and taking responsibility for it.</ref> | # If someone asks his friend to go to a place where it is cheaper to buy that item and he gives him the money in advance, it is only permissible if the giver has responsibility for the money until the sale or that the friend has no responsibility for the item on the way back. For example, if an Israeli asks his friend to buy something for him for cheaper in America and pays him in advance they need to arrange that the friend not be responsible for the money until the sale or not be responsible for the item after the purchase.<reF>Torat Ribbit 9:41. He explains that by giving the money in advance and having the buyer return him the item for that price back in the more expensive place is interest. He is giving him money and getting in return an item that is worth more than the money spent in the place where the buyer lives. If the buyer takes responsibility for the money until the sale, it isn't a loan at all but rather an agency of the friend. Alternatively, if the buyer takes responsibility for the item on the way back it is a loan but the friend isn't doing him a favor in returning the item and taking responsibility for it.</ref> | ||
#The halacha considers that when you buy an item for someone else the item immediately belongs to that person for whom you bought it. One can explicitly stipulate otherwise.<ref>Shulchan Aruch C.M. 183:4 based on Bava Kama 102b</ref> If one did not stipulate and the friend bought an item for his friend with his own money then the friend may not pay extra for the item. Doing so would be interest since when the item was purchased a loan was established from the friend to the sender. Paying extra is interest. To avoid any issue they have to stipulate that the friend is buying it for himself and then selling it to the sender later.<ref>Torat Ribbit ch. 9 fnt. 89</ref> | #The halacha considers that when you buy an item for someone else the item immediately belongs to that person for whom you bought it. One can explicitly stipulate otherwise.<ref>Shulchan Aruch C.M. 183:4 based on Bava Kama 102b</ref> If one did not stipulate and the friend bought an item for his friend with his own money then the friend may not pay extra for the item. Doing so would be interest since when the item was purchased a loan was established from the friend to the sender. Paying extra is interest. To avoid any issue they have to stipulate that the friend is buying it for himself and then selling it to the sender later.<ref>Torat Ribbit ch. 9 fnt. 89</ref> | ||
==Early Bird Specials== | |||
# Municipal kindergartens sometimes have a two tiered pricing system. If you pay for each month you pay one price and if you pay in advance of the entire year or several months there is a discount. It is permitted to pay with either arrangement.<Ref>Torat Ribbit 10:74 explains that it is permitted to pay a cheaper price in advance for a rental or salaried worker for a service if it was done in advance (see Shulchan Aruch Y.D. 176:8). The payment is really hiring the city to provide a service. Even though generally one can't hire a worker for cheaper in advance unless the worker starts immediately (Shulchan Aruch Y.D. 176:8) since the arrangement isn't a timed worker (poel) but a serviced worker (kablan) that they can't retract from it is permitted. He quotes that Rav Elyashiv permitted this.</ref> | |||
# Catering for a wedding, bar mitzvah, or otherwise should not fix a price in advance without a heter iska because doing so can involve there being a discount for this early payment. It is certainly forbidden without a heter iska if there is a discount for advanced payment.<ref>Torat Ribbit 10:76</ref> | |||
# In renting a catering hall or wedding hall only it is permitted to pay a discounted price for early payment since it is a rental of real estate.<ref>Torat Ribbit 10:79</ref> | |||
==Taking a Loan from an Israeli Bank== | ==Taking a Loan from an Israeli Bank== | ||
# It is permitted to take a loan from an Israeli bank account since there is a heter iska klali. It is preferable to write on the contract that it works with a heter iska.<ref>Yalkut Yosef Sova Semachot v. 1 p. 517 writes that it is permitted to take an interest loan from the Israeli banks. Here are his reasons: | # It is permitted to take a loan from an Israeli bank account since there is a heter iska klali. It is preferable to write on the contract that it works with a heter iska.<ref>Yalkut Yosef Sova Semachot v. 1 p. 517 writes that it is permitted to take an interest loan from the Israeli banks. Here are his reasons: | ||
