Will your Colchester rental pass EPC C by 2030?

5,209 of 11,458 privately rented homes in Colchester are below EPC C, 45% of the local rental market. They must be upgraded by 1 October 2030.

How Colchester compares

Below average

Colchester is in better shape than most of England and Wales.

Best councils Worst councils

45% of rented homes here are below EPC C, against 53% across England and Wales. That ranks Colchester 277 of 318 councils by the share needing work.

Every band in Colchester

A 4

B 569

C 5,676

C is the line. Everything below it must be upgraded

D 3,970

E 1,135

F 79

G 25

Of 11,458 privately rented homes with a current certificate.

How many can actually reach C?

4,835 of the 5,209 sub-C rentals in Colchester, 93% of them, already have a potential rating of C or better on their current certificate. That is the assessor's own estimate of what the property would reach if the recommended measures were installed.

Landlords are required to spend up to £10,000 per property. Above that, an exemption may apply.

The transitional rule

An EPC rated C or higher on the existing Energy Efficiency Rating, issued before 1 October 2029, counts as compliant until that certificate expires.

Source: Transitional rule. Verified 21 September 2026.

Local housing stock

All tenures in Colchester, from properties with a current certificate.
Privately rented	11,458
Socially rented	9,334
Owner occupied	29,648
Median floor area	80 m²

Postcode districts in Colchester

Districts that sit mostly or wholly inside Colchester.

District	Post town	Rented	Below C	Share
CO1	Colchester	2,450	1,211	49%
CO4	Colchester	3,110	1,159	37%
CO2	Colchester	2,797	1,011	36%
CO7	Colchester	1,376	919	67%
CO3	Colchester	1,467	790	54%
CO6	Colchester	907	663	73%
CO5	Colchester	910	553	61%
CO8	Bures	72	55	76%