Learn Hardcore Spanish (Spain): Quiero descansar en casa, solo que todavía tengo que terminar mi informe. - I want to rest at home, only I still have to finish my report.

Quiero descansar en casa, solo que todavía tengo que terminar mi informe.
→ I want to rest at home, it’s just that I still have to finish my report.

You can replace it with pero:

Quiero descansar en casa, pero todavía tengo que terminar mi informe.

The difference is nuance:

pero = a straightforward but, simple contrast.
solo que = a softer contrast, like adding a small objection or explaining the “problem” that gets in the way of what you want. It sounds more like spoken, everyday Spanish.

Does solo here mean "only" or "alone"?

In solo que, solo does not mean “alone”. It’s part of the expression solo que, roughly “only that / it’s just that”.

So:

It does not mean: "I want to rest at home, alone, that I still have to finish my report." (that would be wrong)
It means: "I want to rest at home, only (the problem is that) I still have to finish my report."

If you wanted “alone”, you’d say:

Quiero descansar en casa solo.
(I want to rest at home alone.)

Here solo is an adverb meaning “alone”, and it’s not followed by que.

Should solo have an accent (sólo) in this sentence?

According to current standard rules, no accent is needed:

Quiero descansar en casa, solo que todavía tengo que terminar mi informe.

The RAE now recommends writing solo without an accent almost always, even when it means “only”. In this sentence it’s part of solo que, acting like a conjunction, so it definitely does not take an accent.

Older textbooks or teachers might still use sólo when it means “only”, but you don’t need it here, and in modern usage it’s usually omitted.

Why is there a comma before solo que?

The comma separates two clauses:

Quiero descansar en casa,
solo que todavía tengo que terminar mi informe.

Solo que is functioning like a weak conjunction, similar to pero ("but"), so a comma is natural and recommended, just as in English:

I want to rest at home, but I still have to finish my report.

In fast, informal writing, some natives might drop the comma, but the version with the comma is the standard, clear one.

Could I just say pero instead of solo que? Would that sound natural in Spain?

Yes, that’s completely natural:

Quiero descansar en casa, pero todavía tengo que terminar mi informe.

Differences:

pero → neutral, standard but. Works everywhere, all registers.
solo que → slightly more colloquial and conversational, adds a sense of “the only problem is that…”.

Both are common and natural in Spain. Choosing one or the other is mostly a question of tone.

Why is it Quiero descansar and not Me quiero descansar?

The verb descansar (to rest) is normally not reflexive in standard Spanish:

Quiero descansar. = I want to rest.

You only add me with verbs that are reflexive or pronominal, for example:

Quiero relajarme. = I want to relax (myself).
Quiero ducharme. = I want to take a shower.

While descansarse exists in some regional or special uses, the normal, general form is descansar (without me). So Me quiero descansar sounds odd or wrong in most contexts.

Why is it en casa and not en la casa?

En casa (without article) is an idiomatic expression meaning "at home":

Quiero descansar en casa.
→ I want to rest at home.

If you say en la casa, you’re talking more literally about the house (the building):

Quiero descansar en la casa.
→ I want to rest in the house (not outside / not somewhere else).

In this sentence, the intended meaning is simply “at home”, so en casa is what natives normally say.

What is the nuance of todavía here? Can I replace it with aún or ya?

Todavía here means "still" in the sense of an action that has not yet been completed:

Todavía tengo que terminar mi informe.
→ I still have to finish my report.

You can replace it with aún:

Aún tengo que terminar mi informe.
This is also correct; in Spain, aún can sound a bit more formal or literary, but it’s very common in speech too.

You cannot replace it with ya in the same meaning. Ya often means “already” or “now”:

Ya he terminado mi informe. = I have already finished my report.
Ya tengo que irme. = I have to leave now.

So in this sentence, to express “still”, use todavía or aún, not ya.

Why is it todavía tengo instead of tengo todavía? Are both word orders possible?

Both orders are possible:

Todavía tengo que terminar mi informe.
Tengo todavía que terminar mi informe.

The most natural and common in everyday speech is:

Todavía tengo…

Putting todavía before the verb is the neutral choice. Tengo todavía… is also correct but can sound slightly more emphatic or marked; you might hear it more in careful or literary style, or when the speaker wants to stress the “still” part.

What does tengo que + infinitive express exactly? Is it like "must" or "have to"?

Tener que + infinitive expresses obligation / necessity, usually similar to English "have to":

Tengo que terminar mi informe.
→ I have to finish my report.

It’s often a bit weaker and more conversational than must, and very common in spoken Spanish.

Other options:

Debo terminar mi informe.
→ more like I must / I ought to finish my report (can sound more formal or moral).
Hay que terminar el informe.
→ One must / It’s necessary to finish the report (impersonal: it doesn’t say who specifically).

Why is there no yo before quiero?

Spanish usually omits subject pronouns because the verb ending shows the person:

Quiero = I want
Quieres = you want
Quiere = he/she/you (formal) want(s), etc.

So:

Quiero descansar en casa… already clearly means I want to rest at home…
Adding yo is not necessary.

You can say Yo quiero descansar en casa… if you want to emphasize “I” (for contrast: I want to rest, but others maybe don’t), but the neutral version does not include yo.

Why is it mi informe and not el informe? Would el informe also be correct?

Both mi informe and el informe can be correct, but they sound slightly different:

mi informe = my report, explicitly marks possession; very clear in isolation.
el informe = the report, which contextually might still be “my report” if everyone knows whose report it is.

In a typical learner sentence with no previous context, mi informe is more natural because:

We usually say “I have to finish my report” in English too.
It clearly expresses that the report belongs to the speaker.

Could I say Quisiera descansar en casa instead of Quiero descansar en casa? What changes?

Yes, you can, but the tone changes.

Quiero descansar en casa…
→ Direct: I want to rest at home… (normal, neutral in spoken Spanish).
Quisiera descansar en casa…
→ More polite or tentative: literally I would like to rest at home…
It can sound softer, more hypothetical, or more formal.

In everyday speech in Spain, quiero is extremely common and doesn’t sound rude in a context like this. Quisiera is often used in requests (especially in Latin America, but also understood and used in Spain):

Quisiera hablar con usted. = I’d like to speak with you.