A lifelong New Yorker, Trump was raised in the city's Queens borough and later moved to Manhattan. Trump Tower serves as both his residence and the headquarters of the Trump Organisation, his real estate company.

"As President, I will always be there to help New York and the great people of New York. It will always have a special place in my heart!" Trump said.

Trump, a Republican, has feuded with New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio and New York state Governor Andrew Cuomo, both Democrats.

"Good riddance. It's not like @realDonaldTrump paid taxes here anyway. He's all yours, Florida," Cuomo said in a tweet.

De Blasio said on Twitter: "Don't let the door hit you on the way out or whatever."

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Trump filed to change his primary residence in late September in Palm Beach County Circuit Court, The New York Times reported.

In the declaration, Trump refers to Trump Tower - his home since the early 1980s, the place where he launched his presidential campaign - in the past tense: "I formerly resided at 721 Fifth Avenue."

Trump lists his "other places of abode" as 1600 Pennsylvania Ave., the White House's address, and Trump National Golf Club Bedminster in New Jersey, where he has spent 90 of his days as President, according to the NBC News tracker.

In his Twitter posts, Trump alluded to his local unpopularity - nearly 80 per cent of New York City voted for Hillary Clinton in 2016 - but a person close to the President said his decision was based mainly on taxes. That would make Trump one of many wealthy individuals to seek refuge in the Southern state.

Because Trump has refused to make his tax documents public, it's unclear how much money he stands to save in the move, but Florida notably does not have a state income tax or an estate tax. In New York, meanwhile, the state's top tax rate is nearly 9 per cent and the city's top rate is nearly 4 per cent. The state's top estate tax rate - applying to fortunes greater than $US10.1 million - is 16 per cent.

"The move to Florida could save him a lot of money," said commentator and former aide to President Bill Clinton Keith Boykin on Twitter, "but we don't know how much because he won't release his tax returns."

Trump is also in the middle of a legal battle with Cyrus Vance, Manhattan's district attorney, who subpoenaed eight years of his tax returns.

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After a federal judge rejected Trump's sweeping claim of immunity as "repugnant" to the Constitution, he seethed on Twitter at Vance and his investigation.

Trump is running for re-election in November 2020 and, if he wins, would make the White House his home until January 2025.

Reuters, The Washington Post