The advantage I found with self-hosted software is that its one-time. I pay for it and I don't have to worry about a monthly billing. Similar software in SaaS model would cost me about $70-$100 per month. Eventually these costs start adding up. In one-time, I know that my investment is around $500-$800 or so. But that's all then. I can use the software for years without an issue.
- vBulletin forum (http://vbulletin.com) for the base of my site - CometChat (http://cometchat.com) for adding Facebook like chat to the site - Kayako (http://kayako.com) for support tickets and issues
The advantage I found with self-hosted software is that its one-time. I pay for it and I don't have to worry about a monthly billing. Similar software in SaaS model would cost me about $70-$100 per month. Eventually these costs start adding up. In one-time, I know that my investment is around $500-$800 or so. But that's all then. I can use the software for years without an issue.