The audit · United States

StructureDeclining Balance Co-ownership (Diminishing Mushārakah)

Main concernAMJA: permissible in need; tax/insurance allocation

The longest-operating and largest US Islamic home provider. Its co-ownership structure carries one of the most credible Shariah boards in the West, and AMJA ruled it permissible in the face of need — while flagging an unjust distribution of taxes, insurance and maintenance. Permissibility still turns on rent calibration, who bears ownership risk, and the default mechanism in your executed contract.

StructureDiminishing Mushārakah; also Murābaḥah & Ijārah

Main concernAMJA: permissible in dire need; post-default collection

A faith-based subsidiary of University Bank (a Michigan state-chartered, FDIC-supervised community bank), AAOIFI member since 2007. In 2014 AMJA ruled it permissible only in dire need, applying to UIF's cost-plus and lease-to-own models the objections it raised against Devon Bank's (rent still owed after eviction on default; the customer pays insurance while the financier keeps the payout). That ruling covered the contracts as they stood in 2014 and did not name UIF's current Declining Balance mushārakah. As of 1 April 2026 UIF absorbed American Finance House LARIBA. Contract-dependent — verify ownership transfer, risk-bearing and the default terms.

StructureMurābaḥah (cost-plus deferred sale); historically Ijārah

Main concernAMJA: permissible in dire need; ownership verification

A chartered, FDIC-member community bank (Chicago) — among the few halal home-finance providers that is itself a regulated, deposit-insured bank. AMJA ruled it permissible only in dire need, citing ownership-verification, inequitable insurance treatment, account-freeze rights, and default provisions affecting heirs. Contested pending review of the executed contract.

Structure'Declining Participation in Usufruct', as LARIBA described it (its documents are no longer online)

Main concernAMJA: impermissible; legacy book absorbed into UIF

A pioneer of US faith-based home finance (1987) — but AMJA ruled the legacy LARIBA contract IMPERMISSIBLE, finding it 'does not differ from a traditional mortgage'. As of 1 April 2026 LARIBA was merged into UIF; new originations now run through UIF's structures. Treat as legacy/absorbed and verify which entity's contract you would actually sign today.

StructureIjārah wa Iqtinā (lease-to-own) via a purchasing trust

Main concernAMJA: impermissible; front-end interest loan

AMJA ruled this IMPERMISSIBLE — its model 'contains clear and explicit interest' because, on AMJA's reading, the customer first takes out a standard interest-based mortgage that is then restructured. A separate Darul Iftaa (Askimam) fatwa also concluded it is not Shariah-compliant. Approach with serious caution and read the actual chain of contracts.

StructureMember-funded Mushārakah co-ownership (cooperative)

Main concernAMJA: permissible (2015); CA-only, limited capacity

Notable as one of two US providers in this set (with Neeyah) whose AMJA approval is not limited to need: after Ameen eliminated late fees and corrected maintenance allocation, AMJA ruled (Jan 2015 update) that 'the contracts that Ameen Housing is now using are consistent with the laws of the Shareeah'. As a member-funded co-op that invests only in California and Texas properties, capacity and availability are limited. Verify member obligations and current terms.

StructureDiminishing Mushāraka (shared-equity co-ownership) funded only from private investor capital, ending in full buyer ownership over 15 years

Main concernAMJA-approved contract; independent board still recommended

The standout new US finding: AMJA's Resident Fatwa Committee (Fatwa ID 87782, issued 14 January 2026) reviewed the diminishing-partnership contract Neeyah submitted and found it 'a contract acceptable under Islamic law' — the most recent specific AMJA approval of a US home-finance contract in this audit. The green is conditional: AMJA also recommended Neeyah appoint a formal named independent Shariah Supervisory Board, which has not been publicly confirmed, and no NMLS number is publicly verifiable.

StructureA national conventional mortgage lender distributing Ijara CDC's lease-to-own contract as a 'Halal Financing Program'

Main concernUnderlying Ijara CDC contract ruled IMPERMISSIBLE by AMJA

A material consumer alert rather than an endorsement. CMG Financial (NMLS #1820, licensed in all 50 states) is a large conventional mortgage lender that markets a 'Halal Financing Program' delivered ENTIRELY through Ijara CDC's contract structure. Because AMJA's 2014 resolution ruled the Ijara CDC structure 'not allowed' (a conventional interest-based mortgage sits at the front of the chain), that impermissibility ruling applies equally to CMG's halal product — yet CMG's national scale means many buyers may encounter it as a mainstream 'halal' option. Treat with serious caution.

StructureShariah-screened managed portfolios + HLAL ETF

Main concernVerify screen thresholds + purification

An investment, not a mortgage — an SEC-registered robo-adviser with an external Shariah committee (Shariah Review Bureau) following AAOIFI guidelines. Screened-equity products clear the structural lens more cleanly than home finance. Still verify the screening thresholds and dividend-purification policy. Disclosure: in February 2022 the SEC found Wahed had not adopted written policies and procedures to assure Shari'ah compliance on an ongoing basis (among other findings); without admitting or denying, Wahed agreed to pay a $300,000 penalty and to retain an independent compliance consultant. Ask what procedures are in place now.

StructureShariah-managed mutual funds (equity + sukuk income)

Main concernVerify current board + purification policy

Among the oldest screened US funds — the Amana Income Fund dates to 1986. Structurally investment products run by an SEC-registered adviser and reviewed by independent scholars. Review the financial-ratio screens and how purification is handled for shareholders.

StructureFamily of Shariah-compliant ETFs (equity, sukuk, REIT)

Main concernNamed scholars not surfaced; verify prospectus

A family of US-listed Shariah ETFs managed per AAOIFI rules by ShariaPortfolio, with a published purification calculator. Structurally investment products that clear the lens more cleanly than home finance. Verify each fund's named Shariah committee, expense ratio, and how the industry-exclusion overlay shifts risk versus the parent index.

StructureScreened equity + halal fixed-income funds (Azzad Ethical Fund / Azzad Wise Capital Fund), screened to AAOIFI Shariah Standard 21

Main concernScreen + purification published; reconfirm on current prospectus

Audit V2 (methodology-grounded, from Azzad's own published Ethical and Shariah Investment Guidelines). One of the longest-running US halal managers — an SEC-registered adviser, not a debt provider, so the structural lens that troubles home finance does not apply: a shareholder owns a slice of the underlying businesses rather than holding a debt claim, and the analysis turns on the rigour of the screen. Azzad's is public, explicitly built on AAOIFI Shariah Standard 21, and overseen by a named scholarly board. Green on the structural lens; verify the live thresholds and purification figures on the current prospectus before relying on them.

StructureState-registered RIA — Halal Custom Indexing + financial planning; cash-only; flat monthly fee (0% AUM); Shariah pronouncement by Amanie Advisors' board; custody at Charles Schwab

Main concernState-registered (6 states); young; flat fee steep for small balances

A state-registered RIA (CRD#325403, McLean VA) offering halal custom indexing and full financial planning at flat monthly fees with zero AUM%. It carries strong named Shariah governance for a newer US investing provider: a Shariah pronouncement issued on 3 February 2026 by the Shariah Supervisory Board of Amanie Advisors, whose named scholars include Dr. Mohamed Ali Elgari, a member of AAOIFI's 2024–2028 Shari'ah Board. (NoorVest itself notes that AAOIFI did not issue the pronouncement.) Yellow because it is state-registered only (six states in the SEC's adviser database: CA, FL, MD, NY, NC, VA), founded c.2023 with limited track record, and the flat fee is steep on small portfolios.

StructureSEC-RIA human-advised halal equity portfolios; AAOIFI-aligned screening; 401(k)/IRA management; Express digital tier

Main concernFull Shariah board not publicly named; most fees not published

One of the oldest halal wealth managers in the US (founded 2003; SEC-registered since December 2014, CRD#173937, Lake Mary FL), operating under fiduciary duty with AAOIFI-aligned screening. Yellow because the public record does not name the full Shariah board, no external AAOIFI/AMJA certificate is posted, and only its Express tier's fees are published (0.5%–0.75% a year).

StructureSEC-RIA robo-advisory wrap-fee halal portfolios (via Alpaca); sub-adviser to the MNZL ETF (NASDAQ, Nov 2025); US home finance 'coming soon'

Main concernPost-acquisition continuity; no AMJA fatwa

An SEC-registered RIA (CRD#308500, registered 2020 as Aghaz, acquired by Manzil Canada / Murabaha Inc. in Nov 2024 and rebranded). Named, credentialled Shariah board (Dr. Shaher Abbas, Mufti Faraz Adam, Dr. Mohamed Anouar Gadhoum) with AAOIFI compliance stated in its SEC-filed wrap-fee brochure; it also sub-advises the MNZL ETF on NASDAQ. Yellow due to the recent acquisition transition, no AMJA fatwa, and US home finance not yet live.

StructureAAOIFI stock-screening platform (130,000+ stocks) + SEC-RIA managed halal portfolios ($500 min) + brokerage via Alpaca

Main concernRIA only since 2025; parent in active crowdfunding

A widely-used halal screening platform (600,000+ users) that added SEC-RIA managed portfolios in 2025 (CRD#338525). Named scholars include Dr. Aznan Hasan (a sitting AAOIFI Shariah Board member) and Mufti Faraz Adam (Amanah Advisors), with SIPC-protected custody at Alpaca and the lowest entry point of any surveyed manager ($500 / $5-a-month). Yellow due to the recency of RIA registration and the absence of a public formal fatwa.

StructureAAOIFI stock-screening app (130,000+ stocks) — NOT an adviser or broker-dealer; brokerage access via Alpaca

Main concernA screening TOOL, not a fiduciary managed service

The leading US halal stock-screening app ($1B+ connected assets), operated by Investroo Inc. (d.b.a. Zoya), with named AAOIFI-credentialled advisers Joe Bradford (AAOIFI CSAA; former VP/Senior Shariah Consultant at Al Rajhi Bank) and Umer Khan. Categorically it is a TOOL — explicitly not an investment adviser, broker-dealer or FINRA member — so it carries no fiduciary duty and the user bears full execution responsibility. Strong screening transparency, but it informs rather than manages.