Answer
Wa `alaykum as-salamu wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh.
In the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful.
All praise and thanks are due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon His Messenger.
In this fatwa:
1- If co-wives are willing to share a family home, it is their decision.
2- However, it’s not acceptable for a husband to force two wives to live together in a single apartment that couldn’t secure their privacy.
Answering your question, Dr. Wael Shehab, PhD in Islamic Studies from Al-Azhar University and currently the Imam of the Downtown Toronto Masjid in Canada, states:
In principle, a wife has the right to live in a separate apartment that secures her privacy and an honorable marital life.
It’s the duty of the husband to provide his wife with a living place according to his best means and financial status.
If co-wives are willing to share a family home, it is their decision. However, it’s not acceptable for a husband to force two wives to live together in a single apartment that couldn’t secure their privacy.
Generally speaking, marital life and arrangements should be fixed by mutual understanding, love, care, and consideration of spouses’ fair rights and obligations.
Allah Almighty knows best.
Editor’s note: This fatwa is from Ask the Scholar’s archive and was originally published at an earlier date.