Hammer, level, pliers, needle nose pliers, screwdrivers - Phillips head & flat head, tape measure, box cutter with extra blades, all in bright colors so they won't easily be lost once they are put down.

All of the above is great! I also carry a multi-head screw driver, painters tape and a 15' tape measure.

My father-in-law gave me a toilet plunger for a wedding shower gift as my toilet had been clogged and I had to borrow his.

The above lists are great. Add a Home Depot or Lowe's gift card for the things you might need mid project. Anyone else measure DIY projects by trips to those places??

I consider a ladder a tool given that I never use one unless I'm also using hand tools.

I agree, the above lists are spot on!

band-aids and lots of em.

Avoid battery powered tools! If you use power tools get the old fashioned corded tools. Battery powered tools are great if you are using them on a regular basis. Those batteries need to be charged to be usable. A replacement battery can cost as much as a tool *AND* a new battery!

I have many different tools, but a very basic set would be a replaceable bit screw driver, offset pliers, wire stripping & crimper pliers, good electrical tape, duct or gaffers tape. Duct tape solves a lot of problems, but is on;y a temporary patch. As Red Green says duct tape is the home handyman's secret weapon!

If you use battery powered tools, invest in a batter recharger and a few spare batteries so you can swap them out when one starts to lose it's charge. My husband has been doing that for years, and with his careful online shopping, he finds replacement batteries for very good prices.

Must have picture hangers and wire. I'm assuming you've got a small level in there already.

While bridal showers are nice for the bride, a tool shower is great for the groom. Invite the guys and ask for tool gifts. It is great. You can never have too many tape measures, screwdrivers, or any hand tool. We had one for a friend and it was a real hit. The guys had fun and the tools were really appreciated.

A bottle of Advil and a good bottle of Wine.

An 18V cordless drill costs less than 50.00 and comes with a quick charge battery. I am a professional cabinetmaker and keep a Ryobi drill set at home for any emergency. It will clear a blocked drain with the right attachment and can be used for everything from tightening furniture hardware to putting up pictures. A great hoilday gift or housewarming gift.

A picture perfect level is an awesome gift and would certainly get lots of use... I like the easy super slides for moving furniture, measuring tape, nails, screw driver, glue, hammer, a non traditional item like a glue gun is used more often than you might think. This is a great start for new home owners.

Gee my husband goes to Lowes almost EVERY DAY! LOL!

Then again he collects a check from there some days too----

When my son and daughter in law moved into their 100 year old house we gifted them with tools---Circular saw; hand tools and by chance a used but in fab condition tile saw we came on at a yard sale--this enabled them to re-do their kitchen and stairwells. We have also gifted them with most of their all purpose and car tools over the years---they do a lot of their own work and son can take apart and repair most anything---early childhood training plus engineering school. We also gave them a step ladder to enable them to re-do their ceilings.

Now we have to get the "spare" radial arm saw out to them-----we have inherited a complete shop inc all the metal and wood working tools you would ever need! We added a welder to the mix and a large air compressor---something that son doesn't have room for at this time but is envious of!

Can't ever have enough tools!

A funny---when we were visiting son and future daughter in law I needed to know what the stair situation was at their rental. DIL whipped out her PINK tool kit and took a cell pic of the rise and run of the stairs with a tape measure for scale! Clever girl!

A hammer, a tape measure and a cordless screwdriver and a beer is a good start to any job.

a spirit level,, and a wrench too.

Great ideas around here from everyone! I would just like to advocate that vice-grips are an awesome substitution for pliers. They are somewhat of a cross between pliers and an adjustable wrench that can give you the grip you need on what you're working on and are able to lock in place. This allows you moe freedom to work on whatever without worrying about losing your grip. They can work especially well for those awkward hard-to-reach situations.

Box cutter and a couple trash containers on wheels, with large trashbags that fit.

Orange Home Depot home repair "bible", directions to how-to website and a home maintenance checklist says the person whose ex heard dripping in the living room during an early morning rainstorm and didn't think to check it out.

With the divorce rate what it is, if we are invited to a wedding where we are friends of the groom, we always give a tool or set of starter tools like those mentioned above. In the the event of a divorce, he can take our gift w/ him, maybe.

First, I suggest you know the person pretty well. All I can manage is to change light bulbs and washers and get creaky doors to stop creaking. Perhaps that is a bit of an exaggeration as I have been known to use a hammer, pliers, screw drivers (flat and Phillips) and an exacto knife. In addition, I would include Superglue/Crazy glue, some Elmer's glue, DW40, Silicon spray and various types of tape - duct, masking, etc. and maybe a ball of twine . Oh, and a set of good scissors if they don't already have them.

The very first thing I did when we bought our house was to buy a good-quality ladder tall enough to get up to the roof and down safely. Literally, I stopped at Home Depot on the way home after being handed the key at signing. It is the advice I always give to new homeowners, usually unsolicited because nobody thinks about how important it is.

All the small hand tools and supplies mentioned are great and many are absolute necessities, but that goes for any project, whether you live in a rental, apartment, etc. For a house that you own, the ladder is a uniquely indispensable tool.

When we first bought our house, I found what we really needed were garden tools. We already had basic household hand tools, but we needed rakes, shovels, spades, clippers, hoses, etc.

A $1.98 calculator.

All new (and existing) homeowners need the business card (or phone number) for a professional window treatment installer. [Although I'm slightly biased on that point].

:-)

Dewalt drill kit, quality bits, flat bar, proper pliers set & screw drivers, plenty of plumbers putty, keep hardware on hand at all times.

Love it.. And a tape measure!!

Counselor. And either a divorce attorney or an event planner.

I concur with the above lists of small hand tools and would add a putty knife and my newest handy item: a Scrub Daddy sponge, best dang thing to have on hand!,

Quality paint brushes, rollers, and other painting accoutrements.

Definitely a solid measuring tape like this, built to last http://canopy.co/products/2169. Also just discovered this little fancy outlet, which could be a great asset in any home. http://canopy.co/products/1056

A list of phone numbers. Plumber, electrician, handyman. For invariably the DIY goes haywire for most of us!

The jokey responses are on the right track. It’s the kind of gift that gives twice, first with a laugh, then with practical content. How are you with graphic design? Consider copying the business cards or online info of key trades — handyperson, plumber, lawn care, appliance repair — onto a single sheet and framing it or putting it into a sheet protector. Of course, this assumes you have access to current referral-and-rating info for tradespeople in the neighborhood of your friends’ new home. Maybe you know someone who lives there? Have access to your friends’ new Nextdoor neighborhood pages? You could entitle the sheet, “Foolproof Response to a Honey-Do List”, or something else tongue-in-cheek.

As for the toolbox, a small, nice-looking one might be your best bet, since the new homeowners might already have a conventionally one that likely lives in the garage. A smaller one could live in the kitchen or linen closet, allowing quick access for small jobs. You could populate the box with a few compact, good quality tools that get used a lot and most people would like having multiples of: small hammer, tape measure, all-in-one tool, small electric screwdriver.

Apologies to commenters who suggested ladders, but I would hesitate to gift anything bigger than a step stool to a non-first responder. That’s because only they know first hand how dangerous a tall ladder can be. According to the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons, every year 500,000 people are treated for ladder-related injuries. Approximately 300 of the incidents are fatal. When I worked as a police reporter for a daily newspaper, I kept a mental list of dumb ways to die. Ladder accidents were on there. Years later, when I worked as a grip on a feature film, even the biggest he-men on the crew were only allowed on a ladder if a fellow crew member would “safety” it from the ground, or hold it firmly with both hands while watching the user. Two friends of mine were hospitalized in ladder accidents a year ago in separate incidents in their homes. One was knocked unconscious.

I’ll post photo ideas for toolkit separately.

Here are some basic items that could serve as a starter set for a small toolbox