This notion may be wrong because of changes over the years: (1) 52% of all businesses in the U.S. are now home-based and (2) the IRS created a simplified home office deduction method. The IRS notes that nearly 3.4 million taxpayers claimed this deduction in 2012 (the most recent year for statistics). Note: There are no audit statistics specifically tied to the home office deduction. Those eligible for it probably have no reason not to claim it.
Find the free supplements to the 2015 tax books right here: J.K. Lasser’s Small Business Taxes 2015 and 1001 Deductions and Tax Breaks.