Housewarming Gifts a New Homeowner Will Use the First Week

Quick answer: Buy the thing they'll reach for at 9 p.m. on a Sunday when something drips, trips or won't open. Prices below are tiers where each category is commonly sold. Check the current price before you buy.

For ten years, somebody else's maintenance guy handled every small disaster. Then the keys change hands and a new homeowner learns that the toolbox is now them. Most people have a screwdriver from a flat-pack bookshelf and a vague plan.

A candle doesn't fix a running toilet. These do.

Under $25

A 25-foot tape measure. Every project starts with a number, and the first one comes the day they ask whether the couch fits through the door. Look for a wide, rigid blade that stands out a few feet without folding, a locking button, and a hook that slides slightly, which is on purpose. It suits everyone, and it's the gift people lose first, so buy a good one.

A non-contact voltage tester. It's a pen-sized device that beeps near a live wire. It's the cheapest way to find out whether an outlet is really dead before anybody unscrews a cover plate. Check it against a known live outlet first, every time, and still flip the breaker. It suits the person who says "how hard can it be" about a light fixture.

An LED headlamp. Under sinks, in attics and inside the breaker panel closet, a flashlight needs a third hand and a headlamp doesn't. Look for one that runs on common batteries or a rechargeable one with a cable they already own. It suits everybody.

A plunger and a closet auger, as a pair. The auger is the one that works when the plunger doesn't. The auger may land at the top of this tier or just above it, so check the current price. This is the gift nobody wants to buy for themselves and everybody wants in the middle of the night.

$25 to $75

A carbon monoxide detector and a smoke detector. These cost less than dinner for two. Check the date printed on the back of any detector in the house already, since they have a replacement age. It's the most useful gift on this list and the least glamorous. It suits every new owner, and especially anyone with kids.

A fire extinguisher rated for household fires. Look for a multipurpose rating on the label (the letters A, B and C) and a gauge you can read at a glance. Mount it where the exit is, not behind the fire. Check the current price, since sizes vary a lot.

A basic hand-tool kit in a bag or box. Hammer, pliers, adjustable wrench, a few screwdrivers, a utility knife, a level. The advantage is that it's all in one place. The weakness is that the cheap hammer is often too light and the screwdriver tips wear fast. Pick a kit with a full-size hammer and a metal-shanked screwdriver set, and skip the "200 pieces!" boxes padded with tiny bits. It suits the owner starting from zero. If they already have a few tools, give a single better one instead.

A stud finder. Hanging a TV or a heavy mirror is a first-month job, and drywall anchors fail where studs don't. Read the reviews for people complaining about false readings in older plaster walls. Suits the person with a long weekend and a lot of blank walls.

$75 to $200

A cordless drill and driver kit with two batteries. This is the one tool that gets used every week of ownership. Two batteries matter more than a fancy motor, because the first one always dies mid-project. Before you buy, check which battery system the brand uses and whether they sell the other tools they'll want later. The platform piece is worth ten minutes: How to Pick a Cordless Tool Platform You Won't Regret. And if you're torn on what to spend, read What to Spend on a Drill and Impact Driver, and What to Skip.

A stepladder with a published duty rating. Look for the rating label on the side rail. The ANSI Type IA rating is a heavier-duty class than Type I, and a good ladder says which it is. Fiberglass doesn't conduct like aluminum, which matters near wiring. Pick the height by their ceilings, and check the current price, because tall ladders climb fast. It suits anybody with a vaulted ceiling or a gutter.

A wet/dry shop vacuum. It handles drywall dust, a leaking water heater, a flooded basement corner and the garage floor. Look for a hose that stays put, a filter you can buy again, and wheels that don't catch on every threshold. Cheaper ones are loud and the small tank fills quickly. That's the trade-off, and it's a fair one.

A rolling tool chest or sturdy tool bag. A place for tools gets used. A drawer full of loose tools gets abandoned. Our piece on where every tool goes and why you'll actually put it back explains why this matters more than the tools themselves.

The one that lasts a lifetime

A real workbench with a vise. Everything else on this list wears out, gets lost or gets replaced. A solid bench is where a home's repairs, projects and eventually the kids' woodworking start, and it can outlive the house.

Save for it, split it among family or build it. Check these things:

• A thick, flat top. Ask the maker how thick it is and what it's made of. A hollow, thin top will bounce under a hammer.
• A published weight rating. If the maker doesn't list one, assume it's not meant for heavy work.
• Adjustable feet. Garage floors slope, and a rocking bench is a nuisance forever.
• A vise bolted through the top, not screwed into a thin edge.
• Room to grow. Dog holes or a shelf below.

If you'd rather give a lifetime of hand tools, the brands that sell replacement parts and publish a lifetime warranty program are the ones to consider. Read the actual warranty before you buy: what voids it, who pays shipping, and whether you need a receipt. A good layout for the space is in How to Lay Out a Real Shop in a One-Car Garage.

The gift that costs nothing

A Saturday morning walking the house. Show up with coffee and a roll of masking tape. Do these in order:

1. Find the main water shutoff and turn it off and on, so a valve that's seized shows up now and not during a flood.
2. Find the shutoff valve under every sink and toilet.
3. Label the breaker panel. One of you flips each breaker, the other calls out which lights and outlets went dead and writes it down. It takes about an hour and it's the best hour of the first month.
4. Change the furnace filter together and write the size on the side of the furnace.
5. Patch one nail hole, and teach them how.

Do it the old way: arrive early, bring something to eat, and stay until the boxes are flattened and the trash is out. Leave the place better than you found it, including the kitchen.

If you've got the hands, a second gift is a Saturday spent helping them paint, hang a shelf or put up a fence gate. The person who gets to say "I know a guy who knows how" is the one a new homeowner will call for the next twenty years.

Before the next owner of any tool asks, read The Tools You Should Rent and the Ones You Should Just Buy. It'll keep their garage from filling with things used once.