A person is a broker who sells a product for a Jewish company and the buyer is a Jew.
The parties agree that the price per unit is $50. When the buyer says that he needs 45 days to pay, as opposed to the normal 30 days, the broker says that the price would need to be adjusted to $51
1) is this ribis?
2) if it is, why is it different then the fact that the 30 day standard is also a loan?
3) to avoid this, should the broker always be sure to speak out the terms first, and only based on the response give the price (based on the terms)?
Answer
It is indeed Ribbis. There is no Ribbis involved for the normal 30 day allowance, because Ribbis is defined as a payment for a delay in paying a debt. Under the regular conditions, the seller charges $50 a unit, and gives 30 days to pay, but the price is the same whether the buyer pays immediately or after 30 days. As such, there is no extra charge for delaying payment for up to 30 days, and so there is no issue of Ribbis.
However, if the seller wants an extra dollar for an extension of the time allowed for payment, this dollar is a payment for the delay in paying the loan and is thus forbidden as Ribbis.
To avoid this problem, as you suggest he should not discuss with the buyer two different prices, but rather, first ask how many days he will need to pay, and then give him a price accordingly.
For other suggested ways around the problem, see Chavas Da’as [Yoreh De’ah 133 seif kotton 2].
