The ruling on an agent taking the surplus in a lease or sale

The questioner : If. Is it with me? It is with me. Fine, and I did not say, "Rent a house for me for ten thousand." Is that right?

The Shaykh : This is not permissible. That is, if a person says to another, "Find me a house for ten thousand," and he finds a house matching the description the client wants for seven thousand, is it permissible for him to rent it and then sublet it to his client? The answer is that it is not permissible. Likewise, if he is entrusted with buying a commodity, and he is told, "Buy me such-and-such a commodity for one hundred riyals," and he finds it for seventy, do we say that he buys it for seventy and takes one hundred from it? It is not permissible, because he bought it for his client. The same applies to leasing.

The questioner : I buy it for you.

The Shaykh : No, it is never permissible. He is entitled only to the agent's fee, if it is customary for him to take a fee.