Age and type of house
What should you ask about a coal store built against a 1930s house?
Ask about its condition and the junction with the house: the roof, the walls and any damp where it meets the main wall. It is not a planning class, and the survey should not invent one. Describe the small structure that is there.
Last reviewed 24 October 2026. Written for buyers in England and Wales unless this answer says otherwise. No named surveyor has signed this page. It is general guidance, not a report on your house, and not legal advice.
What is the fuller explanation?
These stores sit against the side or rear wall, sometimes with a concrete roof or a cement sheet, and sometimes open to the weather. The useful comment is whether water is held against the house, whether the roof has failed, and whether the wall of the house is cracked or stained at the joint. A home survey does not decide permitted development, and it does not grade the store as a room.
If the store was full, or its door was stuck, say what was not seen. Do not call the house wall dry at that point if the junction was buried in coal or rubbish. There is no national description that makes every 1930s bunker the same. Ask for this one: materials, leaks, and whether it is pulling away from the brickwork.
What should you ask your surveyor?
- What is the store built of, and what is its roof?
- Is the house wall stained or cracked where the store meets it?
- What could you not see because it was full or shut?
What are the typical next steps?
- Describe the junction when you speak to a builder. Do not ask them for a planning class.
- Do not store the defect only as “outbuilding” if the house wall is wet there.
- Clearance, if you need the inside seen, is for the seller to allow.
Costs vary with the building and with who you instruct. Where this page does not cite a published figure, ask the surveyor, a relevant specialist, or your solicitor for a written quote. Do not treat a forum average as the price.
Also asked about this
Is a coal store a cellar?
Not this one. An attached store is outside the rooms. A cupboard under the stairs is a different space.
Does a cement-sheet roof on the store describe the house roof?
No. Keep the sheet on the store. The house roof is a separate element.