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You should be careful here:

I bet you work from home too sometimes, so deduct a %age of your rent and utilities.

This is usually a big red flag for IRS audits. It's my understanding you have to have a dedicated area just for work. So lounging on your couch wouldn't count. A corner desk or separate office is fine I think.

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A corner desk is probably not enough. You really need to have a completely separate office area that is used 100% for work. Last I checked, the home office also must be for the benefit of the employer and not only for the employee. Add in that your chances of being audited go up significantly with a home office deduction and it makes it a risk that needs to be weighed carefully. Definitely find a CPA and get them onboard before trying to claim the home office deduction.

Agreed. I'd recommend against this every time, unless you are 100% prepared for the inconvenience and potential penalties of an audit. It's just not worth it.

I've heard this many times, but interestingly TurboTax says it's not true.

http://turbotax.intuit.com/tax-tools/tax-tips/Small-Business...

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