FWIW, I have no issues with homebrew, but I have used macports for many years and never had any issue.
Especially now that it supports binary packages, I find it perfect for my usage.
I had tons of issues with macports over the years (e.g., emacs port was broken for months after 10.6 came out), but I think that was mostly a function of its smaller userbase and more difficult contribution system. Homebrew seems to have many more users and a far simpler way to contribute, so it's rare that I encounter a broken or old package.