Manhattan apartment sales fall 30% in June, prices remain high

Sales contracts for Manhattan apartments plunged by nearly a third in June as the city’s scorching real estate market started to cool amid recession fears and declining stocks.

New York real estate was on a tear through the early spring, with high prices and strong sales. The median sales price for the second quarter rose to a record $1.25 million, according to data from the firms Miller Samuel and Douglas Elliman. The number of sales — at over 3,800 — was the highest total for the second quarter since the housing boom of 2007.

Yet most of those deals were negotiated in the early part of the year. Brokers and real estate analysts say the Manhattan market took a sharp turn downward in…