Pre-owned home sales in North Texas soared to an all-time high in May. The $255,000 median home price is not only a 10 percent jump since May 2016, it is a staggering 59 percent increase since 2012. 

"As long as [a home] shortage persists, there's no end," Dr. James Gaines, chief economist for the Real Estate Center at Texas A&M University, told the Dallas Morning News. "Rate of change might vary, but it'll still be significant. Demand continues to outpace supply."

Sales of single-family homes fared even better. According to the most recent data from the Real Estate Center and North Texas Real Estate Information Systems, real estate agents in North Texas sold 10,939 homes in May, which was a 15 percent boost from May 2016.

Though most homes sell within 37 days, the shortage of homes in the median-to-$300,000 range often leads to a bidding frenzy that results in first-time and move-up buyers paying more than asking prices. 

The top North Texas areas for gains in sales from May 2016 to May 2017 are:

Properties in the $1 million-and-up range account for a significant chunk of the sales growth as well. In the first five months of this year, 663 homes in North Texas sold for seven figures, which was a 37 percent surge from May of 2016.

Despite the escalation in pre-owned home values, the median new home price is approximately $60,000 more. According to Paige Shipp, a housing analyst with Metrostudy, pre-owned values will continue to rise as long as the price difference between new and existing homes remains high.