Need an opinion...
I almost always spend my weekends in the casino, lots of action, any stakes you want, 40+ tables, lots of fish/some grinders, games going 24/7 rake is $5 max. w/ food comp after 4hrs of play (every 8 hrs).
I'm invited to a $1/2 home game(no rake) tonight. I've played with these guys a couple times before. Friendly game with decent action, no grinders/no fish all are there for fun, people will buy in 2-3 x,but game will usually only run till about 2-3am.
Would you play the casino rake game or play the home game?

bring a brand new deck of cards still shrink wrapped (just in case their cards look worn or marked) and play the home game and see what it's like.

As long as you feel the home game is legit and it runs smoothly, then play a few sessions there and see how you like it....

lastly, make sure that whoever is dealing using a "card guard" (plastic card on the bottom of the deck, a Casino Rewards Card or grocery store Member Card is the perfect size)

or use the joker as the cut card.

Will keep an eye out, don't recall using a cut card. The game is "self" dealt.

Home games have 2 key advantages over casino games:

1. No rake
2. Money stays on the table for the duration of the session

So while the game typically has a set time (or time range) when it ends within a couple of hours the stacks will inevitably get deeper as you don't have cashouts (people normally don't get up unless they reach their max rebuy budget for the evening before quitting time) and no rake to take money off.
Deep play favors the skilled player, and when playing against recreational players, you will typically see people not adjusting properly to the stack sizes as the game progresses. Some examples of this lack of adjustment will include:
Get it in PF 300bb deep with QQ or KK (becuase even after they get 6/7-bet AI they still can't fold those KK)
Get stacked with overpairs (especially AA)
Get stacks in with weak flushes with eff. stacks of 300bb+
etc.

For some of us, home games can feel kind of personal, making it hard to max EV.

As hinted above, there are different type of home games. It depends on what your goals are for playing poker. If it is to just kick back, have fun and not worry about winning much, home games are better. The host can get rid of people who are a PITA, stink and you'll almost never get the game to stop because someone is a rules nit.

However, it is extremely difficult to consistently make money. If you are seen as someone who is better than everyone else and not fun to be around, eventually you'll stop being invited.

If you want to make a consistent living, you need to play in a casino for the most part. There are a few people who do it in home games, but they are very skilled at the social aspects of the game.

Casino 100% of the time. Unless you are going to the home game just as a social get together with friends and it is not really about the poker, the poker is just a side note.

I love showing up to home games when I'm invited, but I never play them for "real" money because
1.) the other players are friends, to some degree.
2.) you're not protected by an impartial 3rd party decision ("decision!!!")
3.) everyone isn't familiar with casino rules and do insane things like flash cards when dealing, show hands before they muck, string bet, ect...
4.) Taking my friends money doesn't appeal to me.

I obviously enjoy playing with bad players when I'm trying to grind out a win, but I'd rather not have a substantial amount of money in play when a game is being run sloppy. Although perhaps your home game is more professionally then the ones I go to. So decide why you want to play cards on any given evening. Then decide the best course of action to pursue those goals. To correctly analyze this you're gonna have to spend a little time at both. For me, I never drink when I'm playing cards at a casino so I enjoy going to home games, playing small stakes, and killing a couple beers while enjoying the company.

I don't "personally" know these people, they are people that I've played with in the past.
The only thing I "fear" is they know each other better than they know me. Last I was there I didn't notice any soft play or checking it down, but you never know. It's a 1/2 and everyone buys in for $200-300 9/10 handed.
I intend to play for stacks...

The casino will always be there. The home game might only run every so often. Go check it out and see if you like it. Have fun!

Enough shady **** happens in casinos... let alone home games. I'd stay away from it but you're the only one actually going there. So keep a watchful eye out for scams and enjoy the no rake and hopefully donkish players. Personally, I'd rather play in the "safer" environment of the casino. But perhaps you found a little gold mine and your should take em for everything you can. Only you can be the judge.

You should fear a lot more than that. Alarm bells should go off if:

1. There is free food or free drinks without rake or a "cover charge."
2. The decks are paper, not plastic.
3. Two decks are used to play.
4. Someone is wearing colored classes.
5. Someone insists on being in their "lucky" chair.

The first thing you should ask yourself is why am I being invited to a private game when I don't know the people well. At best, they are making a mistake that you are a bigger fish than they are. As said above, card mechanics are nearly impossible to catch even on film. If it seems wrong in a strange room, it is too often true to make it worthwhile to play.

Home games always have the best promos.

Few that i've played in, there was a $10 cover charge to cover food and drinks. Food was sandwiches, pizza, beer, soda, chips, and cookies.

Colored glasses is a big one. Believe it or not, back in the Old West, someone figured out that if you wore blue tinted glasses, you could mark cards with lemon juice and see the markings.

The modern day equivalent is a lot better, there are a ton of chemicals you can use to mark cards that only become visible under the lenses of color tinted glasses.

Some of you are more than a little paranoid. No one is cheating at a tiny 1/2 home game, and if they are, they are so bad at it you will figure it out. The worst thing you'll likely see is soft play, but that goes on in casinos, too, if you haven't noticed, on a daily basis. The truth is that "friends" are more likely to be more cutthroat with each other, as they have a lot of history and love to outplay each other. So go and enjoy yourself: you'll have a significant edge if you are a casino reg; some of these games get extraordinarily deep; and it's likely to be more socially satisfying than the casino, with its usual mixture of losers, drunks, ego maniacs, 2+2ers, and other ne'er-do-wells. And, if you don't like it, guess what, you can leave and go back to the casino.

I rather be paranoid than unprepared.

I personally much prefer homegames before casinogames, raked homegames though with a dealer, food and drinks included for the reg players. For a couple of reasons:

1) I find that homegames often play deeper, and the players attending homegames have deeper pockets with heavier amount of realoads.

2)The envirement is much more relaxing than noisy busy casino rooms. When you play long sessions on a regular basis this is actually huge for me. Many homegames have poker equipment way beyond many casinos, for example nice big office chairs for the players,very experienced dealers and a bigger size on the deck than some casino is using.Often the host makes homemade food for the players,and no extra cost- wich in a casino you often need to take a break and eat in the resturant.

3)I like that the money stays on the table for the entire game. In the casino a fish can suddenly cash out, going on dinner with some friends or donk the money away on slot machines or blackjack. In my experience you get more "presents" of money/big pots at homegames compared to casinos. Eventuelly the fish is gonna loose their money, and its not to the house on black jack or craps: its gonna stay on the table.