diff --git a/.github/workflows/release.yml b/.github/workflows/release.yml
index 2602cf2..d535ea5 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/release.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/release.yml
@@ -59,6 +59,7 @@ jobs:
               cp target/release/ldcache_hook "dist/hooks-${{ matrix.arch }}/ldcache_hook-${{ github.ref_name }}"
               cp target/release/pce_hook "dist/hooks-${{ matrix.arch }}/pce_hook-${{ github.ref_name }}"
               cp target/release/mps_hook "dist/hooks-${{ matrix.arch }}/mps_hook-${{ github.ref_name }}"
+              cp target/release/sethomevar "dist/hooks-${{ matrix.arch }}/sethomevar-${{ github.ref_name }}"
               tar -C dist/hooks-${{ matrix.arch }} -czf "dist/hooks-${{ matrix.arch }}.tar.gz" .
               ls -lah target/release/
               ls -lah dist/
diff --git a/Cargo.toml b/Cargo.toml
index e40bdce..32145b1 100644
--- a/Cargo.toml
+++ b/Cargo.toml
@@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
 [workspace]
-members = ["crates/pce_hook", "crates/mps_hook", "crates/ldcache_hook"]
+members = ["crates/pce_hook", "crates/mps_hook", "crates/ldcache_hook", "crates/sethomevar"]
 resolver = "2"
 
 [profile.release]
diff --git a/crates/sethomevar/Cargo.toml b/crates/sethomevar/Cargo.toml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..2048c19
--- /dev/null
+++ b/crates/sethomevar/Cargo.toml
@@ -0,0 +1,10 @@
+[package]
+name = "sethomevar"
+version = "0.1.0"
+edition = "2021"
+publish = false
+
+[dependencies]
+serde = { version = "1", features = ["derive"] }
+serde_json = "1"
+users = "0.11.0"
diff --git a/crates/sethomevar/README.md b/crates/sethomevar/README.md
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..0bb7382
--- /dev/null
+++ b/crates/sethomevar/README.md
@@ -0,0 +1,28 @@
+# Set HOME variable - Precreate Hook
+
+Update container environment replacing HOME variable for running user with the one from the host system.
+
+**What it does**
+
+* Reads the **container config JSON** from `stdin` and emits the updated config to `stdout`. 
+* Reads running user uid from container config.
+* Find HOME host value via getpwuid_r
+* Replace HOME entry in container config env
+* Pretty-prints output and exits non-zero on validation/parse errors (errors go to `stderr`). 
+
+## Usage as a Podman hook
+
+Add a `precreate` hook entry similar to:
+
+```json
+{
+  "version": "1.0.0",
+  "hook": {
+    "path": "/opt/hooks/sethomevar"
+  },
+  "when": {
+    "always": true
+  },
+  "stages": ["precreate"]
+}
+```
diff --git a/crates/sethomevar/src/main.rs b/crates/sethomevar/src/main.rs
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..c3bd14a
--- /dev/null
+++ b/crates/sethomevar/src/main.rs
@@ -0,0 +1,220 @@
+use std::{
+    io::{self, Read, Write},
+    process,
+};
+
+use serde_json::{Map, map::Entry, Value, json};
+use users::get_user_by_uid;
+use users::os::unix::UserExt;
+
+fn main() -> io::Result<()> {
+    // we go for run
+    if let Err(e) = run() {
+        // we output errors to stderr
+        eprintln!("{e}");
+
+        // we return failure status
+        process::exit(1);
+    }
+
+    Ok(())
+}
+
+fn run() -> Result<(), String> {
+    // Read and parse stdin JSON
+    let mut value = read_stdin_json()?;
+    let obj = ensure_obj(value.as_object_mut(), "top-level JSON must be an object")?;
+
+    let env_entries_raw = vec![get_home_env_entry(obj)?];
+
+    // Validate env entries and merge as strings
+    let env_entries = validate_env_strings(env_entries_raw)?;
+    if !env_entries.is_empty() {
+        merge_process_env_strings(obj, env_entries)?;
+    }
+
+    // Pretty-print output JSON with trailing newline
+    let mut stdout = io::stdout().lock();
+
+    serde_json::to_writer_pretty(&mut stdout, &value)
+        .map_err(|e| format!("Failed to write JSON to stdout: {e}"))?;
+
+    stdout
+        .write_all(b"\n")
+        .map_err(|e| format!("Failed to write newline to stdout: {e}"))?;
+    stdout
+        .flush()
+        .map_err(|e| format!("Failed to flush stdout: {e}"))?;
+
+    Ok(())
+}
+
+// Returning ENV HOME entry from the system /etc/passwd
+// 1. get process.user.uid entry from json obj
+// 2. get user entry from uid through getpwuid_r
+// 3. get homedir from user entry
+// 4. build HOME entry string and return it
+fn get_home_env_entry(obj: &mut Map<String, Value>) -> Result<String, String> {
+
+    // Ensure "process" exists
+    let process_val = obj.entry("process".to_string());
+    match process_val {
+        Entry::Vacant(_) => return Err(format!("Validation error: 'process' doesn't exist.")),
+        Entry::Occupied(_) => {},
+    }
+
+    // Ensure "process" is an object
+    let process_obj = process_val
+        .or_insert_with(|| json!({}))
+        .as_object_mut()
+        .ok_or_else(|| "Validation error: 'process' exists but is not an object.".to_string())?;
+
+    // Ensure "user" exists
+    let user_val = process_obj.entry("user".to_string());
+    match user_val {
+        Entry::Vacant(_) => return Err(format!("Validation error: 'process.user' doesn't exist.")),
+        Entry::Occupied(_) => {},
+    }
+
+    let user_obj = user_val
+        .or_insert_with(|| json!({}))
+        .as_object_mut()
+        .ok_or_else(|| "Validation error: 'process.user' exists but is not an object.".to_string())?;
+
+    // Ensure "uid" exists
+    let uid_val = user_obj.entry("uid".to_string());
+    match uid_val {
+        Entry::Vacant(_) => return Err(format!("Validation error: 'process.user.uid' doesn't exist.")),
+        Entry::Occupied(_) => {},
+    }
+
+    // Ensure "uid" is a number
+    let uid: u32 = uid_val
+        .or_insert_with(|| json!(0))
+        .as_number()
+        .ok_or_else(|| "Validation error: 'process.user.uid' exists but is not a number.".to_string())?
+        .as_u64()
+        .ok_or_else(|| "Validation error: 'process.user.uid' is a number but doesn't fit u64.".to_string())?
+        .try_into()
+        .map_err(|e| format!("Validation error: 'process.user.uid' is a number but doesn't fit u32: {e}"))?;
+
+    let user = match get_user_by_uid(uid) {
+        Some(u) => u,
+        None => return Err(format!("Unknown UID: cannot find User by UID {uid}")),
+    };
+    let homedir = user.home_dir().display();
+
+    let home_env_entry = format!("HOME={homedir}");
+
+    Ok(home_env_entry)
+}
+
+// Precreate takes as stdin the container config json
+// We return error if we cannot read or
+// if we cannot parse a valid input json
+fn read_stdin_json() -> Result<Value, String> {
+    let mut input = String::new();
+
+    io::stdin()
+        .read_to_string(&mut input)
+        .map_err(|e| format!("Failed to read from stdin: {e}"))?;
+
+    serde_json::from_str(&input).map_err(|e| format!("Invalid JSON: {e}"))
+}
+
+/// Ensure a `Value` is an object and return it as a mutable map.
+fn ensure_obj<'a>(
+    candidate: Option<&'a mut Map<String, Value>>,
+    err: &str,
+) -> Result<&'a mut Map<String, Value>, String> {
+    candidate.ok_or_else(|| format!("Validation error: {err}."))
+}
+
+fn ensure_array_field<'a>(
+    obj: &'a mut Map<String, Value>,
+    field: &str,
+) -> Result<&'a mut Vec<Value>, String> {
+    use serde_json::map::Entry;
+
+    // before we return the field, we check if the entry is empty/vacant, if so we create the
+    // field, otherwise, we check it needs to be an array or we return error.
+    // TODO: can we have non-array env and mounts?
+    match obj.entry(field.to_string()) {
+        Entry::Vacant(v) => {
+            // Insert an empty array and return a mutable ref to it.
+            let val = v.insert(Value::Array(Vec::new()));
+            Ok(val.as_array_mut().expect("we just inserted an Array"))
+        }
+        Entry::Occupied(e) => {
+            // Tie the borrow to `obj` by consuming the entry.
+            let v = e.into_mut(); // &'a mut Value
+            match v {
+                Value::Array(arr) => Ok(arr),
+                _ => Err(format!(
+                    "Validation error: '{field}' exists but is not an array."
+                )),
+            }
+        }
+    }
+}
+
+/// Validate a list of "KEY=value" strings.
+fn validate_env_strings(entries: Vec<String>) -> Result<Vec<String>, String> {
+    for s in &entries {
+        validate_kv_format(s)?;
+    }
+
+    Ok(entries)
+}
+
+fn validate_kv_format(s: &str) -> Result<(), String> {
+    if let Some((k, _v)) = s.split_once('=') {
+        if k.is_empty() {
+            return Err("Empty environment variable name before '='".into());
+        }
+        Ok(())
+    } else {
+        Err(format!("Invalid env entry (expected KEY=VALUE): {s}"))
+    }
+}
+
+// merging envs into the container config json is as follows
+// 1. we need to add envs into the process object
+// 1.5 we create process if it is not there
+// 2. we validate out envs
+// 3 new env entries are added using two rules
+// 3.1 we append if the env var is new
+// 3.2 we replace if we find it duplicated
+fn merge_process_env_strings(
+    obj: &mut Map<String, Value>,
+    env_entries: Vec<String>,
+) -> Result<(), String> {
+    // Ensure "process" is an object
+    let process_val = obj
+        .entry("process".to_string())
+        .or_insert_with(|| json!({}));
+    let process_obj = process_val
+        .as_object_mut()
+        .ok_or_else(|| "Validation error: 'process' exists but is not an object.".to_string())?;
+
+    let env_arr = ensure_array_field(process_obj, "env")?;
+
+    // logic to add new envs
+    for new in env_entries {
+        // Safe: already validated as KEY=value in main
+        let (new_key, _) = new.split_once('=').unwrap();
+
+        // We scan to find if we have a duplicate, if so we overwrite with new
+        if let Some(idx) = env_arr.iter().rposition(|v| {
+            v.as_str()
+                .and_then(|s| s.split_once('=').map(|(k, _)| k))
+                .is_some_and(|k| k == new_key)
+        }) {
+            env_arr[idx] = Value::String(new);
+        } else {
+            env_arr.push(Value::String(new));
+        }
+    }
+
+    Ok(())
+}