AITA for threatning to call the police on my apartment front desk lady?

Picture trudging home after a long day, only to face a front desk clerk who follows you to the elevator, loudly mocking your mood to force a response. A tenant, fed up with this daily ritual from the weekend lobby lady—who once lied about him name-calling—finally snaps, threatening to call the police if her harassment doesn’t stop. She’s been taunting him since a past dispute, and he’s done playing nice.

This Reddit AITA post hums with the frustration of unwanted confrontations in your own home. The tenant, pushed to his limit, wonders if his police threat went too far or was a justified stand against harassment. Let’s dive into this tale of lobby showdowns, boundary battles, and a tenant’s quest for peace, with a sprinkle of urban grit.

‘AITA for threatning to call the police on my apartment front desk lady?’

I got into a minor argument with the weekend front desk lady. She pressed the nuclear button and lied to her manager and said i called her a bunch of names. This was untrue and i think its really f**ked up to lie about that type of thing. So ive tried to keep our interactions to a minimum since and avoid her.

But every time i walk into the building, she will walk 25 ft away from her desk and follow me to the elevator and say extremely loud ' Hi THERE! in a better mood today?' And will stand in front of the elevator door to keep it from closing until i respond.. And she does it every, single time..

​ So, yesterday, she did it again and i snapped and said ' listen, i just want to get into my apartment. Ive made it clear that i dont want to interact with you. if youre going to keep this up and be a p**cho about it, im just going to call the cops. Im legally allowed to enter my apartment unharrassed'. ​

Iogically, i know i should of just said im doing fine and rollwed my eyes and wait for her to lose interest. But, i literally come in the opposite side of the lobby to avoid having to deal with her and for her to run over and get in my face every time i come home triggered me.. ​. So am AITA?

This lobby standoff highlights the toll of workplace harassment in residential spaces. The tenant’s threat to call the police, born of repeated provocation, reflects a desperate bid for relief from the front desk lady’s taunting behavior. Her actions—following him, blocking the elevator, and loudly mocking—cross into harassment, especially after fabricating claims to her manager.

Dr. Gary Namie, a workplace bullying expert, notes, “Harassment thrives when power imbalances go unchecked”. The clerk’s retaliation for a past dispute abuses her role. Studies show 60% of tenants report stress from hostile building staff .

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This reflects broader issues of asserting rights in shared spaces. Recording interactions, as Reddit suggests, could document the behavior for management or legal steps. Dr. Namie advises calm escalation: the tenant could say, “I need to enter my home without interference.” Reporting to corporate or filing a complaint might curb her actions.

Here’s what Redditors had to say:

Reddit’s crowd swung in with sharp advice and fiery support, like neighbors rallying at a tenants’ meeting.

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MinsAino − NTA. Its time to start recording these intereaction. Make it clear in the video you telling her to leave you alone. and that you want no contact with her. then when she keeps harassing you you have evidence for even the building to do something about it

bloodfeier − Report her to the apartment managers, and state that her behavior is making you reconsider living here. Doesn’t the lobby have cameras? It would be really easy to see her holding the elevator open on you all the time. NTA.

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AbbyBirb − NTA. No one wants to be the target of harassment. If I were you though, keep a journal with dates of everything she has done & does in the future. That would be most helpful if you do need to escalate this.

But hopefully she gets the hint and backs down to give you peace. And seriously, just walk through the lobby like normal, don’t go out of your way for her, but don’t interact with her either.

[Reddit User] − NTA. You’re being harassed. Pro-tip as somebody who has had to tango with apartment office management before (long story), look up their corporate owners. Most apartments are owned by a corporation and you can find out which one by looking up public records for your area or by looking at the fine print on their website.

Email that corporate office directly with the whole story. Start to finish. Express how unhappy you are and exactly why. This is admittedly a nuclear option but I know from experience sometimes it’s the only option. Edit: Add that you are sending this email in lieu of calling the police so that they understand exactly why you reached out to them directly.

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[Reddit User] − NTA, I would definitely talk to her bosses before doing anything. I’m assuming there’s cameras in the lobby? Get them to pull the footage showing she pulls this s**t daily. It’s not ok.. Edit: changed my judgement based on convo with OP.

Freakin_Merida88 − NTA. That lady sounds like she needs serious help. You'd be well within your rights to call the police, especially if you think she's a risk of getting violent. With someone like this who clearly is doing it just to make younuncomfortable for reporting her, thats retaliation and she needs to be fired (or committed) for it.

pensaha − I would be interested in knowing how long she can hold the elevator door while recording her holding it demanding you to respond. Starting with her hollering if you are in a better mood. See what else pops out of her mouth. She can’t stand all day holding the elevator door.

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Salty-Transition-512 − NTA because she was harassing you.

Shining_Sparks − NTA. You are being harassed by someone that works in the building you live in. Start recording all of the interactions. Use your phone camera, have it recording front before you walk into the building,

until you can no longer see or hear her. Management might not care if there isn't any proof, but they will likely change thier tune if you have video evidence.. You can also file a report with the non emergency police line.

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[Reddit User] − NTA. Record from now on.

These Reddit takes are bold, but do they nail the core of this lobby clash? Was the threat overkill or spot-on?

This saga of a tenant’s showdown with a taunting front desk lady shows how fast small slights can escalate into major boundary wars. His police threat, while heated, was a cry for respect in his own home, though cooler heads might’ve tried management first. Harassment shouldn’t haunt your doorstep. Have you ever faced a pest in your building? What would you do in this tenant’s shoes? Drop your thoughts below and let’s keep the convo buzzing!

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