سوال

Can Zakat be used to help a person arrange personal housing, e.g., paying rent, building a home?  

اَلجَوَابْ بِاسْمِ مُلْہِمِ الصَّوَابْ

It is one of the necessary condition for paying Zakat that it is given to a poor person by making him the owner, therefore it is allowed to give  him the amount of  Zakat to build his house or to pay his rent, but it is not allowed to construct houses with the Zakat amount and give them to the poor people only for living, without making them the owners.  

الدر المختار (2/ 344- 356):

 ويشترط أن يكون الصرف ( تمليكا ) لا إباحة كما مر.

حاشية ابن عابدين (2/ 344):

قوله (تمليكا) فلا يكفي فيها الإطعام إلا بطريق التمليك، ولو أطعمه عنده ناويا الزكاة لاتكفي، ط.