I still run a FreeNAS box (well, TrueNAS), because I have work-related needs that Synology can't really handle, but that's a conscious choice and I have the skills necessary both to do it and to know that I need to. Most people do not. And that's okay. They have skills I do not have. Modern society functions on division of labor.
You probably already are! It's very easy to run an open-source firmware on a router that you purchase for the purpose. Don't bother with DD-WRT because it supports hardware that can only be driven by binary blobs tied to ancient kernel versions.
Just get something compatible with OpenWrt. My favorite manufacturer of this stuff essentially ships with OpenWrt plus an extra web interfaces, so you can just access the upstream web interface at a different URI if you don't want to install the latest firmware.
The standard OpenWrt web UI is as good or better than what your average router comes with. It's not harder to use.
It's miles better than any UI I've seen bundled with a router.