His brother was rich then he became poor. Can he give him zakaah even though he still has the foundations of his house?
Question

                My brother was a successful businessman, and because he was so well off he started to build a luxury house. After a while his circumstances changed and he became poor. Is it permissible to give him zakaah even though he still owns the foundations of that house which are worth 50,000 dinars? He has nine children and they are in a bad situation.
Praise be to Allah.
    Firstly: The poor and needy to whom it is permissible to give 
    zakaah are those who do not have sufficient to spend on themselves and their 
    families. If your brother has accommodation that is sufficient for him and 
    his children, then he has to sell the foundations of that house, and spend 
    the proceeds on himself and his children. If he cannot sell it, then it is 
    permissible to give him zakaah for his maintenance and accommodation, but he 
    should not be given zakaah to complete the building of this house, because 
    the poor person should only be given zakaah in order to meet his needs, and 
    your brother’s need for accommodation can be met without building this 
    house, such as by renting a house that is suitable for him. 

    Secondly: 

    Giving zakaah to relatives who are entitled to it is better 
    than giving it to people who are not your relatives, because charity given 
    to a relative is both charity and upholding of the ties of kinship. But if 
    these relatives are among those on whom you are obliged to spend, then it is 
    not permissible to give them the zakaah of your wealth, and you are obliged 
    to spend on them. 

    See the answer to question no.
    20278. 

    Shaykh Muhammad al-Saalih al-‘Uthaymeen said: 

    The more closely a person who is entitled to zakaah is 
    related to you, the more he takes priority over others, because your charity 
    given to a relative is both charity and upholding of the ties of kinship. So 
    it is permissible to give your zakaah to someone who is related to you, 
    subject to the condition that you are not obliged to spend on him. If you 
    are obliged to spend on him, then you must spend on him, and it is not 
    permissible for you to give your zakaah to him. 

    If it so happens that you have a brother from whom no one 
    will inherit except you, and you are rich and are able to spend on him, and 
    he is poor, then it is not permissible for you to give him your zakaah, 
    because what is obligatory for you is to spend on him from your wealth. But 
    if this brother is poor and has children, then it is permissible for you to 
    give him your zakaah, because due to his having children it is not 
    obligatory for you to spend on him, because you are not his heir. 

    Jumu’ah khutbah (al-Majmoo’ah al-Saabi’ah).

    Shaykh Muhammad al-Saalih al-‘Uthaymeen (may Allaah have 
    mercy on him) was asked: 

    What is the ruling on giving zakaah to relatives? 

    He replied: 
The basic principle with 
    regard to that is that it is not permissible for a person to give zakaah to 
    any relative on whom he is obliged to spend if that will be a means of not 
    spending on him. But if he is not obliged to spend on this relative – such 
    as a brother, if the brother has sons and he is not obliged to spend on his 
    brother because he is not his heir as the brother has sons – then in this 
    case it is permissible to give zakaah to the brother, if he is entitled to 
    zakaah. Similarly, if a person has relatives who did not need zakaah for 
    their maintenance, but they have debts, it is permissible to pay off their 
    debts, even if that relative is a father, son, daughter or mother, so long 
    as the debt that they owe is not due to his negligence in spending on their 
    maintenance. 

    Majmoo’ Fataawa Ibn ‘Uthaymeen, 
    18/414 

    And Allaah knows best.