HOUSE prices in Colchester have risen by more than ten per cent, new figures have revealed.

For the first time, the average price topped more than £250,000.

According to figures published by the Office for National Statistics, the average price in December 2015 was £225,965.

In December 2016, it had increased to £250,365.

Tendring saw an 11.1 per cent rise in prices up to an average of £200,961.

In Ipswich, the average price rose 13.3 per cent to £184,514 while residents in Chelmsford now have to pay an average of £314,250 and in Braintree prices rose to an average of £266,743.

However, the large increase in prices is not being matched by wages or income generally meaning more and more people are unable to afford to buy a home.

Details from the National Housing Federation revealed buyers in Colchester would need to earning more than £55,000 a year to get an 80 per cent mortgage for an average home in the borough.

The average income is about £27,000.

During a debate about two proposed garden villages to the east and west of the town Colchester Council leader Paul Smith pointed out even if new homes are built people from the borough are unlikely to be able to afford them.

He said: “We have passed the crunch point when it comes to affordability of homes.

“In some rural villages in Colchester, it has become impossible for local people to buy a property in the village they grew up in unless they are very well off or the bank of mum and dad can allow for a substantial deposit.

“We do not want a situation where the only way you can buy a house is when you are inheriting money.

“To ask someone to pay nine times their income for a property is bordering on outrageous.

“It does make it impossible for many people in Colchester, particularly those on lower salaries or perhaps even working in the public sector.

“Even teachers are struggling to afford mortgages in Colchester on their salary.”

The average monthly rent in Colchester is now £728.