Colchester property guide

Britain's oldest recorded town and one of Essex's largest markets.

This guide brings together the latest property, schools and crime data for Colchester, Essex. Figures cover the 12 months to the end of May 2026 and are sourced from HM Land Registry, Police.uk and the DfE schools register. Fast trains reach London Liverpool Street in about 50 minutes.

Median sale price (12m)

£320,000

Sales registered (12m)

2,073

Open schools

57

About Colchester

Colchester's Dutch Quarter and Victorian terraces sit inside Roman walls, with family estates spreading towards Highwoods and Stanway and new supply at the former garrison.

The army garrison, the University of Essex at Wivenhoe Park and London commuting give demand three separate legs.

House prices in Colchester

The median sale price in Colchester over the last 12 months was £320,000, across 2,073 recorded transactions. That is 2.4% lower than the previous 12 months.

Detached homes were the most-traded type in Colchester, accounting for 669 of the period's sales at a median of £450,000.

Median price by property type, last 12 months

Type	Median price	Sales
Detached	£450,000	669
Semi-detached	£325,000	581
Terraced	£270,000	478
Flat	£170,000	310
Other	£360,000	35

See Colchester sold prices in detail

Schools in Colchester

Colchester has 57 open schools recorded in the DfE register, including 39 primary, 9 secondary and 8 with a sixth form or 16-plus provision.

Nearest secondary schools to Colchester centre

School	Postcode	Distance
Colchester Royal Grammar School	CO3 3ND	1.2 km
St Helena School	CO3 3LE	1.2 km
Colchester County High School for Girls	CO3 3US	2 km
The Thomas Lord Audley School	CO2 8NJ	2.3 km
Philip Morant School and College	CO3 4QS	2.3 km

See Colchester schools by phase

Crime in Colchester

In Colchester, the largest reported categories over the last 12 months were violence and sexual offences (37.2%), anti-social behaviour (10.5%) and criminal damage and arson (9.5%).

Largest reported categories, last 12 months

Category	Share
Violence and sexual offences	37.2%
Anti-social behaviour	10.5%
Criminal damage and arson	9.5%
Public order	8.3%
Other theft	7.5%

See Colchester crime breakdown

Postcode districts in Colchester

Reported incident counts vary across postcode districts within the Colchester boundary, partly reflecting where Police.uk anonymises locations and partly reflecting genuine differences in foot traffic and population density.

Postcode district	Reports (12m)
CO1	10,348
CO2	10,348
CO3	10,348
CO4	10,348
CO5	10,348

Living near Colchester

Nearby towns include Chelmsford, Basildon, Clacton-on-sea, Harlow and Braintree.

Chelmsford
Basildon
Clacton-on-sea
Harlow
Braintree

Other places in Essex

Chelmsford

Frequently asked questions about Colchester

The median sale price in Colchester over the last 12 months was £320,000, based on HM Land Registry data.

There are 57 open schools listed in the DfE register within the Colchester area, covering primary, secondary and sixth-form provision.

According to Police.uk, the most-reported category in Colchester over the last 12 months was violence and sexual offences, out of around 10,348 recorded incidents.

Sale prices come from HM Land Registry, crime statistics from the Police.uk open-data feed, schools data from the Department for Education, flood data from the Environment Agency, and energy ratings from the EPC public register.

The figures refresh monthly as new data is published by each source.

More Colchester property data

Colchester sold prices

Trends, recent sales, top streets

Crime in Colchester

By category and postcode district

Schools in Colchester

Primary, secondary and sixth-form

Get the full report for any Colchester address

A single report covering the property and its surroundings: sale history, flood risk, planning, EPC, schools, crime and broadband. £29.

Search an address