02:51 PM EDT, 04/19/2024 (MT Newswires) -- Luxury home prices climbed to an all-time high in the first quarter as many high-end buyers were undeterred by elevated mortgage rates, with a record share of premium homes purchased in cash at the start of 2024, Redfin (RDFN) said Friday.

The median-priced US luxury home rose 8.7% year over year to an all-time high of $1.23 million, the real estate brokerage's report showed. Luxury homes are those estimated to be in the top 5% of their respective metro area based on market values.

"People with the means to buy high-end homes are jumping in now because they feel confident prices will continue to rise," said David Palmer, a Redfin Premier agent based in Seattle.

A record 47% of luxury homes were bought in cash during the three months ended Feb. 29, up from 44% in the 2023 period and the highest share of cash deals in at least a decade, according to the report.

First-quarter luxury home sales increased 2.1% from the same period of 2023, posting their first year-over-year increases since August 2021 beginning in January.

New listings of luxury homes soared 18.5% year over year in the first quarter, outpacing by roughly seven times the 2.7% growth of non-luxury home listings. "Prices continue to increase for high-end homes, so homeowners feel it's a good time to cash in on their equity," Palmer said.

Prices of non-luxury homes rose at nearly half the pace of luxury homes in the first quarter, the report showed. Non-luxury prices climbed 4.6% to a median $345,000, which was also a record high. Non-luxury home sales decreased 4.2%.

"Even though mortgage rates remain elevated and demand isn't as high as it was during the pandemic, many homebuyers and sellers feel the worst of the housing downturn is behind us," Palmer said.