With rising rates, Seattle may not exactly be a renter’s paradise. But for those on a budget, renting certainly beats buying.

Using data from Seattle-based Zillow, Creditnews Research says only six cities across the United States have a bigger gap between renting and total homeownership costs. The average home price in the Puget Sound region is $753,414, and average total cost is more than $6,900 per month. Contrast that with average rent of $2,250, and residents here pay a staggering $4,662 per month extra to own their own homes.

The study considers all homeownership costs, not just mortgage payments. Think insurance, taxes, and renovation expenses.

“The metros with the highest homeownership costs relative to renting are mainly located on the West Coast, in Hawaii, and parts of the Northeast,” the report notes. “The smallest differences are in the South and Rust Belt.”

The greater San Jose holds the dubious No. 1 ranking, with the total difference between owning and renting more than $11,000. The metro areas of San Francisco, Los Angeles, San Diego, Honolulu and Oxnard-Thousand Oaks, Calif., are the only cities ahead of Seattle.

The smallest differences are in Jackson, Miss.; El Paso, Texas; and Toledo, Ohio. The average home price in Jackson and Toledo is less than $190,000.

The federal Department of Housing and Urban Development says, in general, that households that spend more than 30% of their income on housing are considered at risk. The city of Seattle says nearly 46,000 households across the city are spending more than half of their incomes on housing costs, noting that median home values skyrocketed by 80% between 2010 and 2019, while King County median incomes rose only 55%.

Rent also continues to rise. Rental rates rose almost 92% between 2010 and 2020, according to software company Self Financial.