February 14, 2026 at 9:23 pm

Roommates Spent Months Saying They Were Moving Out, But Got Mad When Another Couple Asked About an Open Apartment

by Diana Whelan

apartment building exterior

Pexels/Reddit

A couple in their early 20s has been living with another couple under the assumption that their roommates would be moving out of state once the lease ended, something they’d said consistently for months.

When a washer/dryer issue gave them temporary access to a vacant one-bedroom unit in the complex, the couple casually floated the idea of renting it when it became available.

That’s when their roommates suddenly changed plans, and accused them of “stealing” an apartment they’d never previously expressed interest in.

AITA for “stealing” an apartment my roommates suddenly wanted?

Me (23F) and my boyfriend (24M) live with another couple.

For basically the entire time we’ve lived together, they’ve said they were moving out of state once our lease is over.

Recently our washer and dryer stopped working, so the apartment complex gave us access to a vacant one-bedroom unit to do laundry.

A dirty little problem.

After using it a couple of times, my boyfriend and I started talking about maybe asking management if we could rent it when it becomes available.

We mentioned this to our roommates, and that’s when things got weird.

They suddenly said they’re not moving anymore and that they also want that same apartment. This was the first time they’d ever said anything like that.

Oh heck no.

Now they’re acting like we’re trying to go behind their backs or take something from them.

But from our side, we only even considered it because we were told for months that they were leaving.

AITA for still wanting to ask about the apartment?

With no official applications submitted yet and no promises made by management, the question becomes whether wanting the apartment is unfair, or just a logical next step based on the information they were given.

This person says NTA at all.

Screenshot 2026 01 26 at 8.59.16 PM e1769479342162 Roommates Spent Months Saying They Were Moving Out, But Got Mad When Another Couple Asked About an Open Apartment

This person agrees…she’s not a mind reader.

Screenshot 2026 01 26 at 8.59.25 PM e1769479337569 Roommates Spent Months Saying They Were Moving Out, But Got Mad When Another Couple Asked About an Open Apartment

And this person has some hard advice.

Screenshot 2026 01 26 at 8.59.32 PM e1769479329913 Roommates Spent Months Saying They Were Moving Out, But Got Mad When Another Couple Asked About an Open Apartment

You can’t call dibs on a future you already told everyone you weren’t sticking around for.

If you liked that post, check out this story about a guy who was forced to sleep on the couch at his wife’s family’s house, so he went to a hotel instead.