The Grand Ayatollah Sistani’s Fatwas About “Loan”

Question 1: What is the [minimum] limit of the difficulty (al-haraj) that lifts the prohibition? Is exorbitant price [for a halãl item] that could still be bought with [financial] strain or by getting a loan a [valid] example that would make a harãm [but cheap alternative] item permissible religiously?

Question 2: Some trading and manufacturing companies get loans from private or state banks in Muslim countries and also from other [non-Muslim] institutions with the condition of interest; and they also earn interest on the deposits they leave in those banks. Are we allowed to buy shares from these companies or be partners in their ventures?

Question 3: Banks in the West give loans —known as mortgage— to those who do not have enough money to buy houses; this is to be paid back in [weekly or monthly] instalments with a high rate of interest. Is a Muslim allowed to use this facility? If it is not permissible, is there a solution in your view for someone who claims that he needs the mortgage to buy his own residential house and does not possess enough money to pay for it?