Even though they share walls and common areas, many people who live in apartment complexes seldom speak to their neighbors.
Often they might just say hello or the like in passing.
Other times, people might get to know their neighbors through hearing them through the walls.
Such was the case with Redditor Historical_Gas4584, who got a sense of what her new neighbors were like upon hearing their arguments either in passing, or through the walls.
Arguments which seemed to only get worse.
When things got so bad that her own personal safety was threatened, the original poster (OP) felt she had no other choice but to call the police.
But after being scolded by her landlord for doing so, the OP took to the subReddit “Am I The A**Hole” (AITA), where she asked fellow Redditors:
“AITA for yelling at my new neighbors to take their bullsh*t elsewhere?”
The OP shared how her new neighbors outwore their welcome to her apartment complex fairly quickly.
“Long story short, a couple and their 4 young kids moved in next door about 3 weeks ago.”
“Only one of the children is school aged.”
“Since they’ve moved in it has been nothing but constant fights and contention.”
“I constantly hear them screaming at each other and I’m fed up.”
“It lasts all hours of the night.”
“I have 3 kids here myself (12 m[ale, 9 f[emale], 6 m[ale]) and we don’t fight in front of the kids like these people do.”
“Trying not to judge here but I’m just done.”
While the OP made every effort to avoid these neighbors, she finally found herself with no choice but to intervene, much to her landlord’s dismay.
“The kids bus stop is directly behind this person’s house in their shared driveway.”
“It’s an apartment complex.”
“Their door is only MAYBE 15 feet from the edge of the driveway.”
“Usually their fighting is limited to nights but today it was during the day.”
“Full f*cking bore screaming at each other.”
“The woman in the window, the man outside on the sidewalk.”
“Swearing, shouting obscene and highly inappropriate sh*t, etc.”
“This lasted all day long.”
“I get ready to go get my kids off the bus and they are still yelling at each other and at this point they are in the shared driveway where the kids bus stop is versus the front of their building.”
“I go out and at first I don’t say anything but then the conversation took an extremely inappropriate turn and I had to step in and tell them that they had better not speak like that when my kids get off the bus or I WILL be calling the cops, screaming at each other about s*x, drugs and infidelity.”
“The other dad at the bus stop agreed and 100% had my back, thank god.”
“Well these people start coming at me and I had no choice but to call the cops while the other dad got between us.”
“I’m 5’1, small woman.”
“The cops came.”
“The man was arrested.”
“We share the same landlord, so the woman calls the landlord to run her mouth and the landlord calls me pissed saying I’m supposed to call them with complaints and now I’ve caused unwanted attention.”
“AITA?”
Fellow Redditors weighed in on where they believed the OP fell in this particular situation by declaring:
- NTA – Not the A**hole
- YTA – You’re the A**hole
- NAH – No A**holes Here
- ESH – Everybody Sucks Here
The Reddit community stood firmly behind the OP, agreeing that she was in no way the a**hole for calling the police.
Everyone agreed that the OP had no other choice, as her own personal safety was at risk, with many wondering how trustworthy her landlord was.
“NTA now I’m looking at your landlord thinking what sketchy shit are you up to?”
“You did everything correctly what was your landlord going to do in that situation?”- BriefHorror
“NTA.”
“Some landlords think only about money.”
“Your safety was at risk and you did the right thing.”
“Your personal space comes first, not to mention that you want a safe environment for your children.”
:And also, if you called the landlord instead of the cops, what would he do?:
“Come as fast as the police?”
“Settle stuff so both parties are happy?:
“These neighbors would’ve made your life hell if you turned to your landlord and not the police.”
“Good for you, think for your and your family’s safety first and take care.”- boggieh
“NTA.”
“Now I’m wondering about your landlord.”
“When I had an abusive, aggressive neighbor recently, my landlord ENCOURAGED me to call the cops.”
“They wanted a record of the guy’s bad behavior.”
“No landlord should be discouraging you from ‘bringing unwanted attention’ unless they’re doing something illegal or problematic themselves, which isn’t your problem.”
“You just take care of yourself and your kids.”
“Frankly, you’re probably protecting THOSE kids as well if this is how their parents behave.”-FoolMe1nceShameOnU
“NTA.”
“F*ck your landlord and what he wants.”
“Call the cops every time this happens.”
“They’ll make short work of this situation.”
“These people keep it up and they’ll find CPS on them like white on rice.”
“As they should.”
“Make sure you document everything lest your nimrod landlord get it into his little pinhead to retaliate against you.”
“Or your miscreant neighbors do.”- Forsaken_Slug_521
“No.”
“Landlord is blaming the wrong party here.”
“They caused ‘unwanted attention’.”
“NTA.”- PingPongProfessor
“NTA, but please be careful, they know where you live and they sound messy enough to cause you problems.”
“I would get some cameras pointed towards my doors and yard as well, take care of yourself.”
“You did the right thing.”-whatsmypassword73
“NTA.”
“What the f*ck did they think would happen if they decided to have a days-long domestic out in the open?”
“Garbage like that always gets picked up eventually.”
“Is if the best move to call the cops?”
“No, but you tried to tell them, and they gave you no choice.”
“P.S. I hope they can’t make rent and your landlord gets foreclosed, then becomes homeless and destitute for being so f*ckin dumb and smelly.”- pkg4u
“NTA.”
“Why would you even worry about being TA here?”
“You did what everyone should do.”-UninspiredHundrum
“NTA.”
“You did exactly the right thing.”
“Your landlord is being an idiot.”
Maybe come to him over petty stuff, but domestic violence/threats belong with the police.”
“Years ago we lived on the 2nd floor of an apartment and I’m pretty sure your neighbors lived beneath us.”
“I called him ‘the screamer’ and those two would go at it.”
“I told our property manager they needed to intervene or I’d start calling the cops.”
“Nothing changed because landlords just like to keep the peace and collect checks.”
“You know what did chill that screaming shit out?”
“Having a cop knock on their door with questions.”-thebabes2
“Nta!”
“Had this happen in a neighborhood once.”
“The couple was arguing about their sex life and a friend had to go tell them her daughter and a bunch of other kids could hear them.”
“It was crazy.”- Academic_Doughnut164
“NTA, your landlord is super sketchy.”
“Is he friends with those other tenants or something?”
“Why would he be mad at YOU for causing unwanted attention when it was your neighbors drawing the attention with their fights in the first place, surely he knows having tenants like that is going to cause problems with the neighbors, if you hadn’t said something someone else would have eventually.”
“How can he make it anyone’s fault but theirs?”
“I also find it weird that she called him.”
“If I or someone I lived with got into legal trouble the last thing I would do is call my landlord and broadcast it.”
“Whole thing reeks.”- pretzelface666
“NTA and you were right calling the cops because that man posed an immediate threat to your safety the second he started walking towards you.”-ThotsforTaterTots
“NTA.”
“Neighbors screaming like this, for me there is an order of escalation.”
“First I would speak directly to the neighbors and ask them to knock it off.”
“If they don’t, I would contact property management/landlord about it.”
“If that fails or if at any point there seems to be somebody in danger, then the cops.”
“And I wouldn’t call the cops just because of noise, but what you described is a really bad situation for your kids so if the first 2 steps fail, then cops are ok.”
“You skipped step 2 because the dude came at you.”
“So the person in danger was you.”
“You couldn’t really have the other dad from the bus stop fending him off you while you call the landlord.”
“That doesn’t even make sense.”
“The guy was aggressive and threatening from what it sounds like so it was completely his fault cops got involved, not yours.”-Sleeping_Lizard
The fact that the OPs landlord showed no concern for the safety of her, and her children is alarming, to say the least.
Even if one half of her unruly neighbors was arrested, it’s hard not to think that the OP and her family should consider moving.