The Tao Gal's Guide to Real Estate: Finding the House of Your Dreams with the Helpf of Six Women and the Ancient Art of the Tao [Paperback]

Bernadette Murphy (Author), Michelle Huneven (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 10, 2006

At last, a readable, entertaining, and practical real estate guide--the perfect companion for women intent on buying a home.

Once a week, six women living in Los Angeles meet to read from the Tao te Ching and reflect on their lives. One subject arises over and over: the dream of owning a home. One by one they take on the real estate market. They discover, among themselves, great reservoirs of expertise and experience that keep them sane--and laughing--along the way. Now, the Tao Girls want to share that expertise and experience with women who find themselves similarly confused, frustrated, or disappointed.

The Tao Girl's Guide to Real Estate offers a way to keep your head through it all, to eliminate that sense of helplessness, overwhelming tension, and emotional fatigue so often a part of finding a home. In telling their lively and often amusing personal stories, the Tao Girls also deliver a terrific dose of practical advice for buying any house--from the smallest condo to a suburban family dream house.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Michelle Huneven is an award-winning fiction writer whose novel, Jamesland, was shortlisted for the Los Angeles Times Book Award for Fiction, and whose previous novel, Round Rock, was named a New York Times Notable Book and a Los Angeles Times Best Book of the Year.

Bernadette Murphy is a literary critic for the Los Angeles Times, and has written for Newsday, Ms., the San Francisco Chronicle, and LA Weekly, among others. She is the author of the bestselling Zen and the Art of Knitting.

Product Details

• Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: Bloomsbury USA (January 10, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1582345619
• ISBN-13: 978-1582345611
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.4 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,385,786 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An invaluable asset - this book!, January 24, 2006

By 

M. Hagan - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Tao Gal's Guide to Real Estate: Finding the House of Your Dreams with the Helpf of Six Women and the Ancient Art of the Tao (Paperback)

I recently got The Tao Gals Guide to Real Estate in the mail and couldn't put it down. I had millions of things to do but I just could not put it down.

In my life I have bought three houses. The first house I was a single woman. The next two houses I was married. However, being married did not make the process any easier on any level.

Once again, I find myself single and deciding whether to buy or not to buy.

Fortunately, reading The Tao Gals Guide to Real Estate let me go through the entire "deciding to buy, house hunting, buying, refurbishing," process without having to do it all again.

This deeply personal book helped me take a look at the financial, spiritual, and mental health considerations when buying a home. Yet, there is a nuts and bolts aspect to the book that I desperately needed.

Thanks to this guide - the personal stories, tragedies, successes, and work sheets- I could make a rational decision. I now know what it would REALLY cost. I was able to make a decision that is based in reality and not fear.

Because the women in the book were so honest and clear about their journeys it helped me with mine.

This book is invaluable!

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Real Estate for Humans, February 28, 2006

By 

Sean R. Mitchell (Los Angeles CA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Tao Gal's Guide to Real Estate: Finding the House of Your Dreams with the Helpf of Six Women and the Ancient Art of the Tao (Paperback)

As a man who, with my wife, has bought two homes in the past five years, I wish this wonderful book had been available to us before we did so. I've gamely waded through tomes offering financial advice before, but this is altogether different, a book about real estate that is built on storytelling -- with narrative skills reflecting the literary pedigrees of its co-authors. It's quite serious and ultimately decodes the daunting abracadabra of escrow fees and loan packages, but meanwhile it's a great read! The title could just as easily be "Real Estate for Humans."

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars What a great tool!, March 23, 2006

By 

W. K. (Rochester, NY, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Tao Gal's Guide to Real Estate: Finding the House of Your Dreams with the Helpf of Six Women and the Ancient Art of the Tao (Paperback)

This book has given me some valuable information and insider tips about
buying a house, all written in a way that I can really relate to as a single woman.
It has given me confidence, and also makes me feel better equipped to deal with whats coming in my house hunt. It's like having an understanding girlfriend with you all the time - one who knows all about real estate!

I definitely recommend it!