A fine line between religion and "huh?"

I have made a bit of noise on this blog about the ridiculous housing situation here. In short, there is very little available and a seemingly infinite amount of demand. I'll save you the trouble of drawing a graph and say that the end result is simply high prices for small spaces.

But one of the most annoying aspects is that the entire year's rent is due in advance. So on top of high prices, you have to either have super-deep pockets or a company with generous benefits when it comes to housing.

I had thought this was just a quirk, like how Cincinnatians put chili on their spaghetti and Scots deep-fry everything. However, I was told last night it actually stems from Islamic lending practices. A little research shows no proscription against leasing per se, but charging interest or payment penalties are forbidden. So perhaps this just protects landlords, who in theory have no recourse for a tenant who doesn't pay on time... or ever.