One possible reason for problems drawing an initial rectangle:
If you start the rectangle outside the view boundaries, the rectangle entities will be put on the sheet rather than on the view. Entities "drawn on" the sheet rather than on a view can't be used for details, section lines, etc.
You only have to start drawing the entity inside the view boundary. Once you've started drawing the entity, the view boundary will automatically resize itself to enclose the new entities.
-handleman, CSWP (The new, easy test)