These days, you want a Stihl or a Husqvarna for a "serious" saw.
Perhaps 30 years ago, Homelite and McCulloch decided there was more money in making a whole bunch of "consumer grade" saws, than in selling a few professional grade saws to Loggers. Their quality declined. In a few years, Stihl and Husqvarna
owned the professional market.
The last small Homelite that was made to do a day's work was the EZ series of the late 60's and mid 70's. The XL series lasted a long time, and was good for its day. But they became dated.
I still have two old Homelite EZ saws, an old XL that I picked up used, and a small Poulan that I seem to have inherited from Mom. While I have used the Poulan up a tree, simply because it's small and light, I view it as the saw I lend to someone I don't really like all that much.
The old Homelites will work, but when compared to a modern saw with anti-vibration mounting, they show their age
My "serious" saw is a Husqvarna 385XP. You don't need anything this big. In fact, don't even approach this class of saw until you have some real experience. But it's a nice saw. I lucked into a "Demo" saw, got an $800 saw with about 20 hours on it, for $400, so I jumped at it. I had a bunch of wood down, and had been thinking of a Husky 365 or maybe 372. But I'm happy with what I got.
What Homelite and McCulloch (just about a forgotten name, these days) forgot was: The guy in the 'burbs will want to buy the brands the "real Loggers" use. Stihl and Husky started making small saws. Stihl has a really nice line of small saws. The lesser names are being pushed out of the consumer saw market, too.
For just a job or two, probably any saw you can get for a good price will do. If you're going to want a reliable saw around for a while, look for a good small Stihl, or maybe a Husqvarna "Rancher."
By the way, the Kevlar safety chaps work. And the hardhat with screen face shield and ear muffs is very nice. Be safe.