10 Essential Home Items

10 Essential Home Items that Every Home Needs

Plus FREE 12-Month Home Maintenance Guide Book

Hey, new homeowner. Just bought your first house and getting settled in! Well, don’t dismiss these 10 essential home items that every home needs. If you have been a homeowner for many years, perhaps there is something on the list that you don’t have but maybe could benefit from. Also, included in this post is my 12-month quarterly home maintenance guidebook. Scroll to the bottom of the post to download the free guidebook.

But before we jump to the post, make sure to check out these other home-focused posts:

• 5 Quick Home Maintenance Tips with First Alert
• Getting Your Home Ready to Sell During the Spring
• Stage Your Home to Stay
• My Home Buying Process

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Here are 10 essential home items that every home needs:

1. Home Security Safe–having an at-home small portable home security safe that is waterproof and fireproof is an essential home item. You can store your important documents (always make sure you have a hard copy), jewelry, cash, keys, etc. I suggest buying a home security safe that comes with a key pad and a physical key because its possible to forget the safe’s code in a panic situation.
2. Cordless Drill–We use our cordless drill so much and it has been such a handy tool. From hanging new curtain rods, assembling new furniture, hanging pictures, this drill has the power to get the job done!
3. First Aid Kit–Every home needs a first aid kit. Be prepared for any emergency. I like to get the pre-kits because they include numerous medical items that I don’t think about. Portable first aid kits makes it so much easy to transport around the house.
4. Fire Extinguisher–this is an essential item that often gets over looked, but having a fire extinguisher can save your home and even life. I suggest having a fire extinguisher on every floor of your home and make it visible and easily accessible. Check out my article about home maintenance with more information about fire extinguishers.
5. Portable Generator–you will thank me when your home loses power! We are always so thankful when we can fire up the generator when the power is out. Portable generators work great, and we attach it to our fridge so we don’t lose our food. We usually have a little more power space to charge a cell phone or two. And of course an entire home generator is expensive but highly recommended!
6. Flashlight— Flashlights become really handy in any household. They are good for emergencies, for the garage, basement, attics, crawlspace. It’s nice to keep one handy in your bedside table. I also like to have multiple flashlights in drawers around the house.
7. Ladder–You’ll be surprised how much you need a ladder in a home. From changing a light bulb to organizing the upper parts of a closet to small home projects like painting a room, a ladder is definitely an essential home item. Now large ladders are made so they are collapsible and easy to store.
8. Vacuum–Obviously a given, but many people don’t think to get one until you have a huge mess on the floor. Vacuums on the market are very versatile and work on hardwood floors and carpet and clean pet hair so much easier than older models. They are also not as clunky and restrictive.
9. Ring Doorbell–some may say that the Ring doorbell is not an essential item but it is a convenient item. With a built-in video, you can see who comes up to your door and it can act as a security camera.
10. Household tool kit— every house needs a tool kit or tool box filled with the essential tools like screw driver, hammer, measuring tape, wretch etc.

Obviously there are so many more essential home items, like extension cords, wifi extenders, garbage cans, cleaning supplies, etc. I have included a few on the graphic above. But I wanted to point out the ones that don’t always come to mind.

Here are a few items that I suggest my clients do immediately when they move into a house–change all the keys and codes to all doors, garages and house security systems. Then switch out the toilet seats. Okay that suggestion is a personal preference, but it is nice to have new, clean toilet seat that no one has sat on. LOL!

ALSO, I have included my FREE 12-MONTH HOME MAINTENANCE GUIDEBOOK. It’s broken up by month and season. I suggest printing it out and then posting somewhere so you can see what to work on every month. If you maintain this schedule, you will save thousands of dollars $$ down the line with future home repairs. And if you ever want to sell your home, it’s all ready to go!