Sales of existing homes slowed slightly in May but still came in at the second-highest level on record, while home prices hit an all-time high.

The U.S. National Association of Realtors reported today that sales of previously owned homes and condominiums edged down 0.7% last month. The small decline left sales at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 7.13 million units, down only slightly from the record 7.18 million sales pace in April.

At the same time, home prices moved higher, to an all-time record of US$207,000 for the median price.

The new report was likely to do little to lessen concerns of a housing bubble in some parts of the U.S.

The inventory of homes on the market rose to 4.3 months in May, compared with April’s revised 4.1 months, NAR said. Existing home sales among four regions in the U.S. were mixed. Demand was up 1.9% in the west but sales were down 3% in the Midwest and 0.7% in the south. Demand was flat in the Northeast.

Separately, U.S. initial jobless claims decreased by 20,000 to a seasonally adjusted 314,000 in the week that ended June 18, the Labor Department said today.

The four-week average slipped to 333,000 from 335,500. The 20,000-claim drop took new filings to their lowest mark since new claims tumbled by 33,000 the week ending April 16 to a level of 299,000.