What is your family life like? If you have a busy family that is constantly in and out, dropping clothes, shoes, bags, etc. and making a lot of noise in the main living areas of your home, it might be best to put your home office away from all of that, in a basement, or upstairs where there is less traffic, and somewhere it will be easier for you to focus on your work, rather than be constantly distracted by your home.

Where does your family spend most of their time? If you are a mom running a home based business, and you will doing double duty, caring for your children during the day while also working, it might be wise to put your home based business office near the action so that you can see and hear what is going on, while still having your space to work and focus on your business. Of course, the same argument could be made for having it separate so that you are not distracted. Determine for yourself what your personal situation requires.

What needs do you have for a home office? Do you need access to the outside? Do you need storage space for inventory? Do you need internet capability? Do you need to entertain clients or meet with potential clients in the space? All of these questions will play a role in where your office space is located. For example, if you have a walk out basement with a separate entrance, it might be smart to put your office in the basement. If you need a lot of storage, having it adjacent to the garage, or in a bedroom with a large closet may be the best move. If you are entertaining a lot of clients, having it near the front door so that they do not have to walk through your home to get to your office might be best. Consider your needs, and determine the location accordingly.

Where your home office is, and what it contains will depend significantly on how professional your home office needs to appear, versus how functional it needs to be. For someone with regular meetings, an office with a seating area and windows is a must, for someone who runs an online retail store, an office with storage space for product is a must. Figure out your list of needs, and choose the most suitable location in your home to set it up. This might mean over looking the yard so you can keep an eye on children while working, or it might mean in the front parlor.