It's National Own Your Home Day. Here Are 3 Reasons to Buy in 2023

Moving forward with a home purchase might serve you well.

Owning a home is something some people have no desire to do. And it's easy to see why.

When you own a home, you take on a host of responsibilities -- financial and otherwise. You have to keep up with a mortgage loan, pay property taxes, perform maintenance on your home, and tackle repairs as they pop up. As a renter, all you really need to do is write your landlord a check every month.

But there are plenty of benefits to owning a home. And if that's a goal of yours, you may want to pursue it in 2023.

Of course, this isn't exactly the easiest time to be a home buyer. Property values are still up on a national scale, and mortgage rates are considerably higher than they were a year ago.

But despite these challenges, buying a home this year could be a smart move. Here are three reasons to buy in 2023.

1. Home price gains are slowing

Home sellers are still walking away with profits in today's real estate market. But the amount of profit they're getting is shrinking compared to what they were looking at a year ago.

In fact, as per the most recent S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller U.S. National Home Price NSA Index, home price gains declined across the United States at the end of 2022. This means that while you might pay more for a home in 2023 than you would've before property values started soaring, you may not pay as much as someone who bought in 2021 or 2022.

2. It's good to get more tax breaks

Taxes are a huge burden for Americans on a whole. Owning a home allows you to take advantage of different tax breaks that could leave you owing the IRS less money.

As a homeowner, you're able to deduct the interest you pay on a mortgage. And that's a big deal, because you'll generally pay more in interest during the early stages of your mortgage than during the later stages. Plus, you may be able to take a deduction for your property taxes, or at least a portion of them.

3. You want stability at a time ridden with uncertainty

These are tricky economic times we're grappling with. Inflation is still soaring and many financial experts are convinced a recession is headed our way.

Owning a home could make for a much more stable housing situation than renting. After all, as long as you keep up with your mortgage payments and property taxes, no one can kick you out of your home -- whereas a landlord could decide not to renew your lease when it comes due, even if you've always been a model tenant who paid on time every month.

Plus, when you own a home, you get to build equity in it. That equity is something you might be able to borrow against down the line as the need arises.

Even though now's not the easiest time to be a home buyer, there are plenty of good reasons to move forward with a home purchase in 2023. And while housing inventory is still limited, if you're willing to exercise patience, you might land in a position where you can call yourself a homeowner before the year comes to an end.