Chicago, Illinois, USA – Home prices are affordable in Chicago, making monthly mortgage payments cheaper than the current average rent.

If you’re currently renting because you don’t think you can afford a home in your city, you might be surprised — in many major U.S. cities, it’s actually cheaper to pay for a mortgage than to pay rent for any home, according to data from Zillow.

A recent financial study determined the cost of renting versus owning a typical house in America in the 100 largest cities by looking at how rent prices compared to estimated mortgage payments based on median home list prices.

Top 3 Cities Where It’s Cheaper To Own

The top-three cities fall into two buckets geographically: Two of them are in the Midwest and one in the Census-designated Middle Atlantic division. But all three cities are older cities, with histories of large industrial sectors that have since declined over the years. All have seen a revival, or potential for revival, as sectors like healthcare and education have grown to fill the gap left by deindustrialization.

Check out the full report here: The Cost of Renting vs. Owning a Home in America 2018