Man backed for leaving roommate with bare apartment when she kicked him out

Sorting out belongings after a break-up is a dreaded task—and even so, it seems, when the relationship is platonic.

A man on Reddit has garnered widespread support after sharing how he left his roommate with an almost empty apartment following her decision to ask him to move out. The 21-year-old poster (OP) wrote the post asking if he was in the wrong for taking so many of his belongings with him, which 17,000 people upvoted and over 700 users commented on.

In the post, the OP explained that he and his roommate, a 21-year-old woman, had moved in together five months ago as friends. He described their living arrangement as “respectful,” with no apparent tension. Then, one day, without warning, she told him she no longer wanted to live with him, had spoken with their landlord and set a move-out date for him.

The OP was stunned, but cooperative.

“I was blindsided but didn’t put up a fight,” he wrote. “I decided to leave as quickly as I could, because why stay somewhere I’m not wanted? I scrambled to find another place, and in the process, I realized something important: I paid for pretty much everything in the apartment.”

The OP informed his roommate he would take his belongings when he moved out, and she agreed—but when she returned to a near empty apartment, her tone changed.

She accused him of leaving her in a “bare apartment” and vented to mutual friends, some of whom sided with her.

Who Did the Internet Side With?

Reddit users overwhelmingly defended the man.

“She wanted you gone, and you took your belongings with you. That’s normal and expected,” one commenter wrote.

Another likened his actions to the story of a renter who removed their garden after being asked to vacate, writing, “You only took what you brought with you. Your ex-roomie can kick rocks.”

Marriage and family therapist Michelle King Rayfield told Newsweek that while the man was within his rights to take his belongings, the situation still underscores the emotional challenges of dividing shared spaces.

“Fairness isn’t just about ownership—it’s also about consideration for how those choices impact the other person, both practically and emotionally,” she said.

Rayfield suggested that clear communication and empathy could’ve helped avoid such a fallout.

“If the man had given his roommate more notice about his intentions or offered solutions—like suggesting affordable replacements—it might have softened the emotional impact,” she said. “The best way to avoid this kind of fallout is to approach these situations with a mix of practicality, clear communication and a little extra thoughtfulness.

“A good rule of thumb? Treat the end of a shared living arrangement with the same respect and care you’d want if the roles were reversed.”

Newsweek reached out to u/Vivid-Technician-829 for comment via Reddit.