Business class prebuilt desktop or custom-built desktop for home office use?

If you do your own upgrades, then build your own.

Most cases I see seem to be for gamers, though. The ones that aren't seem to be low end, cheap stuff. I wish Antec still made the Sonata III case.

Another drawback is the cost of Windows versus it being included on prebuilts, if Windows is what you will use. Might not really be an issue, though, if you factor in tax deductions.

Prebuilt is cheaper and less headache, with more convenient warranty.

Really depends on your budget and what you want. For convenience and value prebuilt is hard to beat, but you need to do your homework as there are almost always caveats - particularly when it comes to proprietary parts (DELL!), low-end cheap components, and questionable design decisions.

If it's something you plan buying as-is and keeping for 3 years within warranty, prebuilt should be okay. If you are eyeing long-term usage and future expansion options/ability to upgrade or replace just about anything, building your own is the way to go.

I only build my own. But recently I purchased a Dell because everyone was dumping them after pulling out the video cards.

The only thing salvageable on the Dell I purchased is the CPU, SSD and memory. Everything else is proprietary and if it breaks, I will not be able to replace it. This includes the motherboard and power supply

I haven’t used an optical drive for over a decade. If you think you need one, buy an external one and just plug it in when you need it. I purchased one in 2011 and I have yet to open the box