[FPGAhacker]

Do you suppose that if someone’s hot apartment heats a neighbor, that likewise someone’s cold apartment cools a neighbor?

The neighbors have to spend more energy to maintain the temperature of their apartment because of this person not heating their own.

I could see an argument for theft.

[viceroyalbean]

The argument for theft would have to assume that there is a "right" temperature to set. Personally I would be sweating in a t-shirt if I had the heating set to 22C, which would be the only way to prevent the cooling in the example.

As others have pointed out, it's a happy coincidence that the equilibrium is at a point that GP is happy with. If it were higher they would have to actively cool their apartment which can be seen as a cost, sort of comparable to dumping trash on someone's property forcing them to pay to deal with it.