A LANDLORD trying to sell his property is furious with Wiltshire Council for not finding his current tenant a home within in six months.

Gary Mortimer needs to sell the Queens Road, Westbury house because the mortgage is coming to an end soon and if he doesn’t it could be repossessed.

Now he is applying for an eviction notice.

Earlier this year he issued the tenant of 10 years with a Section 21 notice meaning they had six months to find new accommodation.

The tenant immediately applied to the council for housing, but the deadline has passed with no progress.

READ MORE: What are your neighbours up to? Latest planning news from Wiltshire

“The council phoned me about two weeks ago to ask for an extension on the notice,” said Mr Mortimer. “I said no because we’ve got tradesmen coming in. If I say no to all the people I’ve pencilled in, they’re going to do other jobs and won’t have time to do mine for another six to eight weeks.

“I phoned the council on October 7 to see what’s happening with the tenant’s accommodation, and they said they hadn’t found her anything.

“They’ve had six months to do this. What’s the point of the law if they’re not taking any notice of it?”

Mr Mortimer says his tenant is relying on the council to find them accommodation and has asked for multiple extensions to the notice. “The council is just palming it off and waiting until the eleventh hour. Six months is a long time for them to know if they are in a position to do something for a potentially homeless person or not,” he added.

Mr Mortimer said he had no complaints about the tenant but with the mortgage coming to an end he was left with the option to sell up or see it repossessed.

READ MORE: Westbury nightclub awarded sex entertainment licence

Cabinet member for housing, Phil Alford said the council could not discuss individual cases but added: “When a landlord provides a tenant with written notice to leave a property, we will work with the tenants to create a personal housing plan as we have a duty to help them avoid homelessness.

“We will help them to try and secure another home which may be social housing or another private rented property.

“The demand for accommodation is extremely high and we do all we can to try and prevent families from becoming homeless, but it isn’t always possible and in some cases families are provided with temporary accommodation until more suitable accommodation can be found.

“If a family decide they do not want to leave the accommodation they are past the notice expiry date we would explain the rights they have and the implications if they decide to stay.

“The council is not able to force a family to leave or give them permission to stay in a property. Our role is to advise tenants on their legal rights and explain the options available to them and the implications of each option. Once the tenant has made a decision about what they are going to do we would continue to work with them to secure suitable alternative accommodation.”

READ MORE: Appeal launched as council refuses bid to build American-style barn

Mr Mortimer says he will apply for an eviction notice. The council said it is not within its power to give a tenant the right to stay.

The tenant has been approached for comment.