You must prepare your house for sale in order to sell it fast. This is especially important in a depressed real estate market where houses continue sitting on the market for months with no buyers.

These tips will help you sell your house faster.

1) Talk to a Realtor

A Realtor should be the first person you talk to when looking to sell your house.

Most good agents will be able to point out a few things that will be useful to get a buyer for your house.

Most Realtors will easily point out simple things that will help you sell faster. Mostly these are simple changes that cost nothing.

Secondly, they will do a comparable sale analysis of your home and suggest the best market value for your house, which may become your asking price.

Most agents have a list of potential buyers, and may also have networks of real estate agents and professionals who may refer home buyers to them.

If you can, get your house listed in the MLS for increased exposure.

Sometimes circumstances may not allow you to get your house listed. For example, there may not be enough equity to pay real estate commissions or fees needed for listing in the MLS. You probably need to get it sold fast, you could be behind in your mortgage payments or maybe it needs repairs.

In this case, you may then need to sell the house without the help of a real estate agent. The high number of foreclosed properties in the market has forced house prices down. There are also fewer buyers than the houses on the market. This is why you need to get your house ready for sale.

Prepare your house following these tips.

2) Get your house inspected

You must be aware of what needs to get fixed in the house. If possible, everything in the house should be in good working condition. Most buyers first look for what is broken.

3) Fix curb appeal

Buyers will first see the outside of your house. They must get impressed enough to want to go inside.

Keep the yard clean; remove clutter and make it welcoming.

4) Improve staging

Get rid of extra junk and clutter that you have accumulated. A cluttered house looks ugly.

Make sure the house is always perfect inside; make sure the beds are made.

Stage your house properly to look good, both in the pictures you take and visually. Pictures will be the first line of an impression before potential home buyers drive to your house.

5) Be ready to negotiate

Few people are looking to buy a house for full market value in a depressed housing market. If possible, go low on your price and be ready to accommodate lower offers.

6) Expose your house to the market

Advertise in local papers and online sources like Craigslist for added exposure. Of course, you must have a yard sign in front of your house.

Selling your home fast demands that you prepare your house for sale especially in a down market. If you do a good job in preparing it for sale, you will sell it much faster.

Follow these simple tips to ensure a quick sale even when other houses sit in the market.