Yoko Ono To Become the Longest Homeowner Inside NYC’s Storied Dakota Upon Sale of $8M Penthouse

July 29, 2026 - 17:23

Yoko Ono is about to make history inside one of New York City's most legendary buildings. The artist and widow of John Lennon will become the longest-serving current homeowner at the Dakota, the iconic Upper West Side co-op, once the sale of her penthouse apartment closes.

The penthouse, listed for $8 million, sits at the very top of the storied building. Ono has owned the unit for decades, but her tenure at the Dakota goes back even further. She and Lennon first moved into the building in 1973, making her residence there stretch over 50 years. Once the penthouse deal is finalized, no other current owner will have lived in the building longer.

The Dakota, built in the 1880s, has housed a who's who of cultural figures, from Judy Garland to Leonard Bernstein. But Ono's connection to the building is deeply personal. It was outside the Dakota's 72nd Street entrance that Lennon was fatally shot in 1980. Ono has remained in the building since then, maintaining a presence in the same apartment she shared with him.

The sale of the penthouse does not mean Ono is leaving the Dakota entirely. She still owns other units in the building, including the main apartment she and Lennon called home. The transaction simply marks the end of her ownership of the top-floor space, which reportedly offers sweeping views of Central Park and the city skyline.

Real estate insiders say the sale reflects a quiet shift in Ono's holdings, but her status as the building's longest-tenured resident is now set in stone. For a co-op as selective and history-rich as the Dakota, that kind of longevity carries weight.