You’ll want a hammer with a curved claw for pulling nails, not the straight claw favored by wrecking crews and framers. And you’ll want a smooth-face hammer, not corrugated, so you don’t permanently crosshatch your door frame (or thumb) when you swing and miss. While you’re at it, look closely at the hammer’s face to make sure it’s good and flat. Nails that are hit with an angled or otherwise flawed surface are more likely to bend. (You can go on the cheap, with a $5 hickory-handle hammer from Sears, or spend around $16 on something more refined, like Plumb’s 16-ounce Premium Hickory Autograf curved claw hammer.)

A screwdriver purchase can be even more nuanced, if you let it happen. Don’t let it happen.

Buy a multihead screwdriver instead, said Mr. Stone of M.I.T. It should have at least two different size bits for slotted and Phillips screws, as well as Robertson (square) and Torx bits.

My screwdriver is ratcheted, which is easier on the wrist, but that’s not essential. Nor is it crucial to buy a screwdriver that stores the bits in the handle, but it will save you from buying replacements.

“You can’t really see the quality of the steel from looking at it, so buy a good-quality set from a reliable source,” Mr. Stone said. “It doesn’t have to be expensive.” One option: the Stanley FatMax Ratcheting Multi-Bit Screwdriver, for about $10.

And those bits you store in your screwdriver? They’ll come in handy for the testosterone-boosting, .357 magnum of the toolkit: the cordless drill.

If you have to ask, you don’t understand.

But just for the record, toolmakers could charge much more than the $50 going rate for one of these bad boys, and home repair kings would gladly pay.

Mr. Ball, of Pulte Group, actually recommends a cordless hammer drill, which is twice as expensive as a standard drill. “That really opens up the ability of the tool,” he said. “And it’ll last you a lifetime.” One suggestion: the DeWalt 1/2-inch, 18-volt Cordless Compact Hammerdrill kit, including battery and charger, for around $220.