Dear Imam,

Assalamu alaikum. I wanted to ask for your advice on some financial issues. We have some credit card and home equity loans on which we are paying interest. Insha'Allah, our goal is to cut our expenses as much as possible to pay off these loans as soon as possible. We want to wait until they are paid off before we go for Hajj. But the home equity loan is a substantial amount and will take years to pay off. I heard from someone that long term loans like home mortgage, car loan, etc., don't have to be paid off before going for Hajj. What is your opinion and the opinion of the majority of scholars? I am also considering the option of borrowing money from my IRA and 401K account to pay off the credit card and then slowly pay it back in monthly payments to my retirement account which would likely involve paying interest to myself. What do you think about this option? Thank you very much for your help and may Allah reward you for guiding our community.

Secondly, you can go for Hajj as long as you have already paid your monthly payment for the month of Hajj, or have arranged for it to be paid. As for the installments over the long term, do not worry about them.