- I have a scanner that saves scans to a network share. Having a linux-based SMB server on the local network is convenient and privacy-friendly, especially when the disks are encrypted. Doubt you can get privacy like that with a cloud service to which your printer can connect.

- If you follow the 3-2-1 style of backups, having a fileserver at home is convenient for a solid backup regime across all devices.

- You can use a server for serving local media to watch on the TV or any other device

- In some cases, you can use the same server for advanced security, privacy, ad-blocking, and combining multiple internet connections in order to gain fail-over redundancy and increased bandwidth.

I am able to do all of the above with a really simple home server setup [1].

[1]: https://sagar.se/blog/diy-multi-wan-linux-router/diy-multi-w...

I like hosting at home, gives me peace of mind because it's all mine and controlled by me. No latency across LAN and cheap storage (one could say it's at cost price) are other reported advantages.

It's not necessary, sure I could host my email with google like the masses and it would be functionally the same, but it's my preference.