A growing number of homeowners are taking a do-it-yourself approach to selling their property -- saving themselves time and money, a survey shows...

Sellers who make their own "for sale" signs and use online property portals to attract buyers say they have sold their homes in an average of less than two months, while those who use more traditional methods wait more than three months to achieve a sale, according to research by Alliance & Leicester (A&L).

Eight percent of 2,384 people questioned said they had used property Web sites that cut out the need for an estate agent -- and save sellers on estate agency fees -- to find a buyer and the same proportion have used word of mouth.

Around 5 percent have advertised a property for sale in their local paper, 4 percent have made their own "for sale" sign and 1 percent have even used auction Web sites, including eBay.

Becoming more popular

However, 85 percent of those polled still favour using estate agents to sell their homes, 17 percent of whom boost their chances by using more than one agent.

Around 55 percent also rely on estate agents to value their homes.

Another 4 percent put a price tag on their homes themselves and the remainder uses a variety of methods: 22 percent look at similar properties for sale in their area and 9 percent go online, using Web sites such as the Land Registry.

Stephen Leonard, director of mortgages at A&L, said: "Using an estate agent to sell your home is generally viewed as part and parcel of the moving process.

"But the research suggests that DIY methods -- such as using the Internet -- to sell a home are becoming more popular."