• Curb appeal draws buyers to your home.House For Sale image by TMLP from Fotolia.com
  
  Selling a home fast in a depressed real estate market may be a challenge, but it is not insurmountable. Planning ahead and applying a sufficient amount of "elbow grease" to give your home curb appeal will quickly bring it to the forefront of any interested buyer's list. Here are a few tips to help you sell your home fast, regardless of whether it is a buyer's or seller's market.
  
  

Get an inspection

• It isn't necessary for sellers to have their homes inspected before a sale, and many sellers don't want to pay upwards to $400 for an inspection, but in the long run, it's a sound decision. A pre-sale inspection shows a potential buyer that there are no hidden problems. If there are major problems, you'll be ahead of the game by making repairs before putting the house on the market.
  
  

Get the price right

• In a bad market, the first thing to catch a buyer's attention is the price. This doesn't mean you have to give your house away, nor, on the other end of the spectrum, does it mean that you can set the price based on what you paid for it or how much you owe. Comparative shop by calling listing agents of homes for sale in your area. Use the Internet to find out what homes in your area sold for. It lists the selling price of homes that sold within a 2-mile radius of your address.
  
  

Clean, clean, clean!

• Make your home sparkling, Q-tipped clean. Bring out the shine on faucets, fixtures, and windows. Scrub the floors until they are eat-on clean. Sniff out suspect smells by having the carpets and draperies professionally cleaned. Refresh rooms with neutral-colored paint. Repair all the little things you meant to do when you would "get around to it." Fix torn screens, replace ceiling light bulbs, tighten leaky faucets and patch picture holes in the walls.
  
  

Curb appeal

• Clutter is distracting, inside and out. Starting with the outside of your home, clear away any dead debris in the yard, trim bushes and weed the garden. Most buyers begin their home search on the Internet. If your home is posted on a real estate website, make sure the presentation photo is picture-perfect. First impressions do count.
  
  

"Stage" your home

• Once you have tended to the curb appeal, clear the clutter inside. When it comes to interior decorating to sell a house, less is always more. Pack and store anything that is not necessary to live comfortably until your house sells. Remove all personal items, such as photos and collectibles. Rent a storage space to store as much of your personal stuff as you can. Depersonalize your kitchen by clearing off counter tops and removing magnets, photos and messages from the refrigerator front. The idea is to entice buyers to feel like this is their home. When potential buyers view your home, turn on all the lights to add brightness to each room and play light FM music to set a mood.