Trump relocates to Florida, dumps New York

US President Donald Trump has changed his primary address from New York to Florida, according to documents filed with the Palm Beach County Circuit Court.

His wife Melania is moving with him. The Trumps in their filings declared that the Mar-a-Lago Club, Trump’s resort in Palm Beach, will be their permanent residence.

Trump, born and bred in New York, confirmed the decision on Twitter after The New York Times reported on the move, saying that he would “be making Palm Beach, Florida, our Permanent Residence.”

“I cherish New York, and the people of New York,” he added, “and always will.”

But he didn’t have much nice to say about the public officials of New York.

“I have been treated very badly by the political leaders of both the city and state. Few have been treated worse,” he said, describing his decision as the “best for all concerned.”

Some New York leaders shared the sentiment. “Good riddance,” Gov. Andrew Cuomo tweeted. “It’s not like Mr. Trump paid taxes here anyway. He’s all yours, Florida.”

In the documents, Trump said he “formerly resided at 721 Fifth Avenue,” referring to Trump Tower. That has been his primary residence since he moved into the skyscraper off 57th Street in midtown Manhattan in 1983.

An attachment lists his “other places of abode” as 1600 Pennsylvania Ave., the address for the White House, and his private golf club in Bedminster, New Jersey, where he spends warm-weather weekends and a few weeks every summer.

Trump had spent almost all his 72 years in New York. He grew up in Queens, built Trump Tower, starred in “The Apprentice,” bankrupted his businesses six times, and drew cheering crowds and angry protesters to Fifth Avenue after his election.

White House officials declined to say why Trump changed his primary residence, but a person close to the president said the reasons were primarily for tax purposes.

Florida, which does not have a state income tax or inheritance tax, has long been a place for the wealthy to escape the higher taxes of the Northeast.

In his Twitter posts Thursday night, the president claimed that he paid “millions of dollars in city, state and local taxes each year.” There is no way to fact-check his assertion; he has never released his tax returns.

Trump, who is deeply unpopular in New York, was infuriated by a subpoena filed by Cyrus Vance, the Manhattan district attorney, seeking the tax returns, the person close to the president said. Changing his residence to Florida is not expected to have any effect on Vance’s case, which Trump has sought to thwart with a federal lawsuit.

It was unclear how much time he would spend in New York in the future or if he would keep his triplex at the top of Trump Tower. Under New York law, if he spends more than 184 days a year there, he will have to pay state income taxes.