Woman reports next door neighbor for putting a padlock on the emergency fire exit so he can have a private patio: 'The fire door is not a vibes corner'

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Ely Bulnes • Writer and Editor
Sep 15, 2025 2:00 PM EDT

Apartment building group chats can be incredibly helpful, a bit annoying, and even drama-filled nightmares. It's a great to voice your concern about something in your building or quickly find a tenant that you need to communicate with. However, sometimes people can spam the chat or use it to voice much more than just their concerns. 

One woman used her apartment's group chat to inform everyone of something rather alarming: the fire exit on her floor had been padlocked shut. This prompted the owner to come check it out, and they soon discovered that the alcove behind the door had been turned into a makeshift, personal patio. CCTV footage revealed that a neighbor was responsible, and they were issued a warning citing the fire code. Instead of apologizing, the neighbor brushed it off, calling our narrator a spoilsport. 

As an introvert, I understand wanting to have a private, little patio. However, if you're paying rent and sharing space with others, its important to put your community above your person comforts, especially if their safety is involved!

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  • 01

    AITA for reporting a padlocked fire exit that was turned into a private patio by my neighbor?

    E R 14
    via warat42 from Getty Images

    Image is representative only and does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

  • 02
    I was heading back to my unit and saw a padlock on the fire exit by my floor.I posted the pics in the building group chat that
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  • 03
    includes the owner. The owner confirmed it wasn't him behind that and neither authorized someone to do that. he asked
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  • 04
    who did it, and everyone denied in the thread. The owner came up with maintenance to check it in person. They removed the lock,
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  • 05
    and opened the door. Turns out inside the alcove were a chair, an ash tray, and a small table set up like a private patio.
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  • 06
    Cheezburger Image 10554198784
    via MCCAIG from Getty Images Signature

    Image is representative only and does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

  • 07
    Then, the owner looked up at the CCTVs. The footage showed the next door unit using that space and locking it. The owner issued a written warning and cited the fire code on the notice.
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  • 08
    Maintenance cleared the alcove and marked the work order as egress unobstructed. A printed reminder went on the bulletin board about keeping exits
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  • 09
    unlocked and storage free. The neighbor walked past later and muttered that I was kj. I think it is
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  • 10
    hard for him to understand that a fire door is not a patio, not a vape lounge, not a vibes corner or I am just TA. AITA?
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  • That sounds like a cute, little set up. Too bad it came at the expense of the safety of everyone on that floor!

  • If this dude's joy comes in the form of putting peoples' lives at risk, then I think that he deserves to have that joy snuffed out!

  • 11
    Cheezburger Image 10554199296
    via dimaberlinphotos

    Image is representative only and does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

  • 12
    Fickle-Cabinet3956 Absolutely NTA and your neighbor is an idiot because not only would his neighbors possibly need to use it, but he might've needed that exit in an emergency.
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  • 13
    Robyn_withaY And the landlord, who seems to be a responsible, proactive person, could have faced fines and possibly criminal charges
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  • 14
    for a blocked fire exit. Your neighbor is obviously selfish and entitled to put everyone in danger for his own personal indulgences.
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  • 15
    TheVoiceof Reason_ish Fire Marshall's don't play. LL would definitely have had problems.
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    Cheezburger Image 10554199040
    via Andrew Poplavsky

    Image is representative only and does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

  • 17
    Specific-Pattern-774 Exactly, people forget safety rules protect everyone including themselves.
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  • 18
    belai437 The prevailing attitude seems to be "Let me do whatever I want and I don't wanna hear about safety. If something unsafe happens I'll just sue you."
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  • 19
    BurrBridegam99 A fire exit is like a parachute - if you ever actually need it and it's not there, you won't need it again
    via u/BurrBridegam99
  • 20
    ResponsibilityOk5171 NTA. Not only is your neighbour an idiot for putting others in danger, but even more so for locking the door! He probably could have gotten away with it as a private space if he hadn't put a lock on the door.
    via u/ResponsibilityOk5171
  • 21
    Jack3489 I believe locking the fire exit is cause for both criminal charges and eviction in most western jurisdictions.
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  • 22
    yuhuh- Yeah I would evict that dangerous idiot if I was the landlord
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  • 23
    OldGeekWeirdo NTA. This was straight up a safety violation. The neighbor is a royal AH.
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  • 24
    Remember, you only reported it. It was others who deemed this unacceptable. Only wrong doers go after the ones that reported them.
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  • 25
    HappySummerBreeze You would feel worse if you were too afraid to say something and someone do d
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  • 26
    Standing up for community ethics will always make you a few enemies but it's always the - people who want to be selfish and harm others for their own benefit
    via u/HappySummerBreeze

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relationship advice landlord neighbors neighborhood reddit story terrible neighbors relationships entitled Bad Neighbor entitled people apartment
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