What can Hazel do that I can't do with scripting?

I've been trying the Hazel demo recently, and I've been wondering if it's worth paying for the full version (partly because I'm a broke college student).

I'm a fairly proficient programmer, so I'm wondering, what can Hazel do that I can't accomplish with some relatively simple purpose-built scripts? Based on how I've used it so far, I'm not convinced that I should drop $29 on single-purpose software.

A big part of Hazel is the engine itself. Most people when they DIY it with scripts end up with a clumsy system using cron. Hazel uses file events to trigger actions plus it also can make calculations on your rules so that it only wakes up when necessary. There are a bunch of other subtle cases that Hazel handles that a DIY system won't.

If you can leverage the built-in actions, you can save a bunch of time not having to write and debug scripts, which are more error prone. If you want to spend the extra time doing it all yourself then feel free.

Also, I think Hazel is far from single-purpose and does much more than you are giving it credit for.