Depending on your disposition, what you've been lead to believe, and how anxious you are to move into a new residence, buying a home now in such trying market times is either completely out of the question or one that you're on the fence about and are still debating whether or not you wish to dive in.  If you're currently mulling such a decision, you'll be happy to know there are some tempting benefits involved that could assist you in making your final choice.

Turn your house into a home.  Besides your nine to five cubicle, the other place where you spend the majority of your existence is within the precincts of your property.  If you don't actually own this property and are renting, you might be dealing with someone or several people who have stringent stipulations on how you can go about giving your place your own princely visual panache.  As a homeowner, your liberties are limited only to those set by the city, granting you tremendous leeway in terms of being able to convert that house into a beautiful home that reflects your personality.

Streamline your spending and saving.  The privilege of fixed mortgage payments is one relegated to homeowners while renters usually have to concern themselves with a payment that may suddenly increase one day or someone other than yourself moving into your place come lease end.  Services exist that may assist you in turning mortgage interest into some kind of tax deduction, perfect if you're trying to make the most use of where your money goes.

Punctuality pays off.  Equity can theoretically become your best friend and raise your financial status if you've been scrupulous when it comes to making those payments every month.  The more responsible you are the more equity you stand to generate.  You can then choose to apply this unexpected source of income for any lofty transactions you've been striving towards or use it as additional money to put towards your long term savings.

Happy renter, prospective buyer, regardless of which category you fall under opportunities blatantly abound if you're entertaining the thought of some kind of home investment.  Make your decision based on your needs and take any advice or criticism you receive with a grain of salt.  Your long term contentment and financial security are what's important apart from whether or not you buy now or hold out.