Strong demand kept Oahu’s median home and condominium prices up in May.

The median prices for single-family homes and condos were $698,000 and $375,000, respectively, according a Hono­lulu Board of Realtors report released Sunday.

"This past May saw median prices for single-family homes and condominiums rise," said Jack Legal, president of the Honolulu Board of Realtors, in a statement. "We’re seeing improvement in the inventory of homes and condos, but demand remains high for housing at all points of the pricing system."

Prices climbed in May when compared to April, but came up short of the peak median price for homes set in March — $700,000 — and the peak median price for condos set in January — $381,500.

Prices have been fluctuating the past year with the highest median price for homes reaching $719,500 in November. The highest median price for condos was in January.

Median prices reflect the point at which half the prices were above and half were below the given figure.

The median house price in 2015 up to June is $683,300, a bump from the median price of $655,000 during the same period in 2014.

For condos, the median price up to June 2015 is $365,000, compared to $350,000 at the same time last year.

That places 2015 on track for another record year. Last year had the highest median sale price for a single-family house at $675,000 and a condo at $350,000, according to the Honolulu Board of Realtors’ data, which dates back to 1985.

A new record for 2015 was predicted in a University of Hawaii Economic Research Organization report released in March that said Oahu’s median single-family home sale price will rise to $709,600 this year, then to $772,200 next year and on to $816,800 in 2017.

For condos, UHERO projected the median price to rise to $365,000 this year, then to $394,700 next year and to $428,000 in 2017.

After a slump that began about 2008, median home and condo prices have been climbing since 2011, when the median single-family house price was $575,000 and the median condo price was $300,000.

The Honolulu Board of Realtors’ monthly report covers existing properties and does not include new home sales. There were 1,259 single-family homes and 1,865 condos listed in May. Of those, 309 homes and 450 condos traded hands.

Single-family homes were on the market for an average of 17 days, while condos were on the market an average of 23 days.

New listings for single-family homes dropped to 2,032 so far this year, a 2.4 percent decrease, or about 51 fewer homes, compared to the same time last year. New listings for condos, however, increased to 3,151, an 11.5 percent spike, adding 324 units to the market, when compared to this time last year.

Penny Dumont, a Wai­anae-based Realtor, said market prices are rising in Leeward Oahu because "there’s not a lot of inventory."

She recently sold a three-bedroom townhouse in Ewa Beach for $415,000.

"A lot of lookers," she said. "It sold for asking."

She said the lack of affordable houses in West Oahu leaves buyers looking at condos, but even the condo inventory seems limited.

"The houses for a starter home, we’re talking $300,000 to $350,000," she said. "For a starter home, that’s pretty hefty for working-class Hawaii."

High prices are placing properties out of reach for first-time homebuyers, she said.

"The Leeward side of the island, you would think of as the least expensive to live in," she said. "It’s becoming uneconomical."