Residential real estate is loaded with myths and misinformation. Well meaning, well heeled, highly educated men and women of brilliance often utter sentences that make responses difficult.

Last week, a successful entrepreneur said, “I’m putting in a new stair rail, not that it needs it, but the code requires it, and the lender won’t lend any money if it does not meet codes.”

Certainly, the general inspector of the home may suggest that the buyers request it, but the Codes Department lacks the personnel to inspect every house sold in Nashville, and lenders are not aware of houses that are not in compliance with the current building code. In fact, components that met the codes at the time of construction are not required to meet the current code.

One of the more common exclamations follows inspections when the report includes negative aspects of the house, especially atrocious findings. Once an electrical panel was removed and exposed smoldering wiring. At some point in the not-too distant-future, the wiring would have started a fire.

“They had to know about this, and they did not disclose it,” the buyers scream. ” The truth is that most homeowners do not live in conditions where there is the constant threat of fire breaking out at any moment. Most people do not want to die.

But then there are those sellers with convenient amnesia. It is remarkable how many times a homeowner will move into a home and find a deficiency, usually not an alarming issue, but things break.

On many occasions, the buyer will have scores of options to remedy the faulty feature. It is incredible how many times the person calls a company who had visited the house only weeks before the closing for the same issue.

“I told him that he needed to install XYZ system, but he told me just to do enough to hold it together for a few weeks.” Such a situation has resulted in lawsuits won by the buyers. The Tennessee Residential Property Disclosure is required to be provided to buyers in most transactions. If the sellers have used the home as their current residence, it is required.

In the cases of new construction, a one-year warranty is required from the builder. In this situation, the builder is warranting all of the construction, appliances and systems for one year. Occasionally, the sub-contractors finished the work they were contracted to do several months prior to the completion of the overall construction, and the finished house rested on the market for several months after completion.

If that system breaks 11 months past closing, the subcontractor’s warranty has lapsed. Yet, the contractor must honor the warranty. Some will make attempts to evade the responsibility. And there are those that invaded the “It City,’’ formed an LLC, built a few houses, closed the LLC and have hidden with the vermin amidst the trash they built.

Sale of the Week

What does a 28-year-old Finnish born hockey player do when he signs a seven-year $49 million-dollar contract with the Nashville Predators? He skates out to West Meade and buys a house for $1,030,000, of course. At least that is what Pekka Rinne did in June of 2012, after signing his contract in November 2011.

Proving that he is as adroit in his real estate investments as he is at saving goals, he recently sold the home located at 737 Vosswood Drive for $1,600,000. According to listing agent Martin Lovelace of Compass Nashville, LLC, the young goalie invested $300,000 in waterscape with an unfrozen hockey rink, referred to as a “resort-sized pool” by Lovelace.

The pool area includes features befitting a Vezina Trophy winner with a sun deck, hot tub, fire pit and sauna all while the eardrums are massaged with $50,000 of audio components. As would be expected, the pool has a motorized cover just in case any Red Wings should pay a visit then the pool can be quickly covered.

The listing agent noted the pool deck offers an opportunity for al fresco – not to be confused with former Titan kicker Al Del Greco – dining. Speaking of kicking, how about Cairo Santos’ 53-yarder against the vaunted Cleveland Browns? Back to hockey and houses.

If anyone ever saw the need to actually enter the 5,100-square-foot house, the rec room might be a nice place to start, with built-in surround-sound and an oversized wet bar with a keg on tap. With dimensions of 35 feet by 22 feet, the room could accommodate the entire Predator team.

The master bathroom is described by Lovelace as “master bedroom en suite”- a term that will soon be used by every agent in town with every listing going forward. Beats “park-like setting,’’ I suppose. The bathroom of Rinne’s former home had a double shower for that minor league hockey locker room feel. Additionally, there was the requisite soaking tub for those nights when the opponents mercilessly pounded the net.

Allyson Woosley of Parks represented the sellers who received all the fruits of Rinne’s 600 saves, and they did not have to break any bones or lose any teeth in the process.

Richard Courtney is a licensed real estate broker with Fridrich and Clark Realty and can be reached at [email protected].