LOS ANGELES, June 19 -- The statewide median home price in California, the U.S. state with the largest population, hit another record-high in May, up 8.7 percent from May 2023, according to a new report.

The home sales and price report released on Tuesday by the California Association of Realtors showed the statewide median home price in the western U. S. state reached 908,040 U.S. dollars in May, 0.4 percent higher than April's 904,210 dollars, exceeding the 900,000-dollar-benchmark for the second month in a row.

The tally is 72,769 dollars higher than last May. The year-over-year gain was the 11th straight month of annual price increases for the Golden State, said the report.

The report pointed out that stronger sales of higher-priced properties continued to contribute to solid median price growth, especially since million-dollar home sales in California have been rising more rapidly than their more affordable counterparts in the state.

Sales in the million-dollar-and-higher market segment rose 15.5 percent year on year in May, while sales in the sub-500,000 dollars segment declined by 12.2 percent. Sales of homes priced above 1 million dollars now make up 36.6 percent of all sales -- the biggest share in at least the last five years, the report added.

The Los Angeles Times, the biggest newspaper on the U.S. West Coast, reported on Tuesday that a mansion in Malibu, known for its celebrity homes and beaches, was sold for 210 million dollars, setting new record for the most expensive house in the state.

"A persistent shortage of homes for sale, particularly in the more affordable market segments, continued to push up California's median home price to new record highs over the past couple of months," said Jordan Levine, vice president and chief economist for the California Association of Realtors, in the report.

"With mortgage rates coming back down from their recent peaks and market competition heating up, the statewide median price may have more room to grow before the summer ends," he noted.

  - Xinhua