How to Pay the Zakah on a Rented Property

Question:
This questioner is 'Ayyidh 'Abdullah from Baljurashi. He says, "Your Eminence, there is a building with apartments that are rented out on a monthly basis. Sometimes the apartments remain vacant for several months; the tenant leaves, and another comes after a month or more. How do we pay the zakah on the rent from those apartments, and what is the ruling regarding expenses for those apartments, such as repairs, in relation to the zakah?" May Allah reward you.

Answer:
If you rent it out and a lunar year passes over the rent, the rent is subject to zakah. However, if it remains vacant, there is no zakah on it, because it is for rent, not for sale. If it remains vacant, there is no zakah. But if you rent it out for a year or more, you pay zakah on the rent if a lunar year passes over it. If you pay zakah on rent that is due in the future, and you consume it or spend it on your needs, there is no zakah on it. The zakah is on the rent if it remains until a lunar year passes over it. You pay zakah on it if it reaches the nisab, which is fifty-six riyals of silver or more, or the equivalent in paper currency, that is, paper money. Yes.