We understand that buying your first home isn’t a walk in the park. There are many things to consider, follow, and evaluate before deciding on buying your first home. After you plan and decide the type of home you require, the next important thing is how to actually find and own your dream home!

Ijara Community Development Corporation (Ijara CDC) is a non-profit corporation which structures Shariah compliant transactions for home buyers in the US and Canada. Since it started operating in the US in 2005 and in Canada in 2008, it has helped thousands purchase homes through Shariah compliant financing contracts.

One of the biggest challenges Muslims face when it comes to reconciling their faith with their finances is home ownership. With house prices starting in the hundreds of thousands of dollars, how is it possible to buy a house without borrowing money through an interest-based mortgage?

Islamic banking and financial services have been enjoying a major resurgence in recent years. A survey released in 2009 by The Banker magazine found that assets held by Sharia-compliant banks rose 28.6 per cent in 2009 to $822 billion, while assets held by conventional banks grew only 6.8 per cent. However, Islamic finance still accounts for only about 1 per cent of the global financial-services market, according to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.

Analysts predict that the Islamic mortgage market in the West will grow substantially over the next five years. In the United Kingdom, Islamic mortgages were identified as an important emerging niche sector. Two large multinational banks, United National Bank and HSBC, joined the Ahli United Bank in offering Islamic mortgage products.