The New York Times says Rupert Murdoch will buy an apartment at 834 5th Ave. for a New York record $44 million.

NEW YORK (CNN/Money) - Rupert Murdoch, chairman and CEO of media giant News Corp., has agreed to buy the late Laurance Rockefeller's Fifth Avenue penthouse apartment for $44 million, according to a report published Friday.

The New York Times said the billionaire media mogul will pay the asking price for the three-story apartment in a lavish co-op at 834 Fifth Avenue. The price would be the highest ever paid for a Manhattan apartment if the deal goes through, the newspaper said, citing a source familiar with the deal.

The offer was accepted Monday by representatives of Rockefeller's estate, which is responsible for the sale, according to the Times. And once the contract is signed by Murdoch, he and his family must also be approved by the building's co-op board.

If approved, Murdoch would own the 20-room triplex that spans the building's 14th, 15th and 16th floors. It has 8,000 square feet of floor space and spacious terraces on each floor. The monthly maintenance fee is $21,469.07.

The building is already home to many wealthy New Yorkers, including A. Alfred Taubman, the former chairman of Sotheby's; Carroll Petrie, the philanthropist; Harold Prince, the Broadway producer; and John H. Gutfreund, the financier, according to the newspaper.

Murdoch, 73, is ranked No. 43 worldwide with a net worth of about $7.8 billion, according to Forbes magazine.

The current record for a Manhattan apartment sale is $42.25 million, paid last year for a pair of adjoining condominium units at the Time Warner Center on Columbus Circle, the Times said.