Welcome back! As you haven't been active in this forum for 2 years, it is my first time meeting you. I'm so glad that you can have a chance to play this game again! This game is my source of comfort, too!
About new packs and kits, what you miss are only the new ones during the recent 2 years, right?
If you still need enough rest and aren't too eager to get the new pack, playing with what you have and learn many new free updates is better than installing a buggy pack and ruining your save file if you have a long-playing legacy save.
For Rent is still buggy and risks breaking some save files if you play rental residential lot and make it too complex or too big (more details in the forum's bug report). But you can have this pack without a problem if you don't use the rental (And many people didn't have a problem even using the rental, too. It may be 50/50). I have this pack for getting Southeast Asian theme items. Only this part is worth enough as it represents my culture.
Lovestruck EP is the pack that you should avoid for now if you play rotational style (playing multiple families in the same save). That is because it will reduce the romantic relationships of unplayed Sims too quickly unless you have a mod to stop it. But some simmers said it is still okay, so you may take time to research it before deciding for yourself.
If you enjoy occult and ghost themes, Life & Death is a great pack for you. I haven't played the feature enough yet, so I can't tell you if it's buggy or not. But this is the safe pack to have without altering other parts of the game.
Businesses & Hobbies is a good pack for non-occult play, with new small business lots and gameplay. And it's great for gameplay that focuses on improving skills because new mentor system.
You should check the information of each EP, and also check the negative reviews to know if it's an acceptable risk or not. It's better to keep your game as a safe and comfortable place.
About kits, you can check the items and buy what appeals to you most. They are not essential for gameplay, but give more variety to your CAS and build & buy catalog.
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Finally, unless you're the player who enjoys every unpredictable thing and doesn't mind restarting the game, you can buy anything you want to try. But if you are the micromanaging player, you should keep playing with the new base game update for a while, and then gradually add the new pack to see the change and notice the issue before risking breaking the game.
Or, it would be better to try with a new save to learn the change before playing your legacy save file (if you have one). There are many changes in 2 years! (Also, many bugs included lol)
