How long a complaint takes
Answers
Longer than the problem you are trying to solve, which is why the other routes matter.
The stages
- Intake and acceptance, usually weeks.
- Investigation, which is where most of the time goes. Both sides are interviewed and documents are requested. Months is normal.
- Conciliation, which runs alongside. Most complaints that resolve, resolve here.
- A determination, if it does not settle. HUD aims at 100 days and routinely exceeds it, and state agencies vary widely.
What that means practically
If your landlord is demanding the animal be removed next week, a complaint will not resolve that in time. It is worth filing, and it is not a substitute for dealing with the immediate problem: corrected documentation, a written response, legal aid, or advice about an injunction.
What to do in the meantime
- Keep paying rent. This is the single most important thing.
- Keep the animal safe and well behaved, because conduct during the process becomes part of it.
- Keep records. Everything that happens while the complaint runs is potential evidence, including retaliation.
- Take advice about a private suit, which is a different timeline and is where injunctive relief lives.
After 2026
For an untrained emotional support animal a federal complaint is less likely to produce a finding than it was before May 2026. A state complaint runs on state law and is unaffected, which for most people makes the state agency the better first call.
Common questions
- Can I withdraw if it settles?
- Yes. Most complaints resolve through conciliation rather than a determination, and an agreement there can include exactly the accommodation you asked for.