Phoenix may be a lovely place to visit—botanical gardens, good sporting environment for golf, tennis and pickleball, museums galore, good food and drink, access to national parks, and among the country's sunniest metropolitan areas. But to live?  

Before residents unpack their bags and settle in, they may want to know that median rent payment there grew by a whopping 26% year over year YoY this past February on a six-month moving average basis, compared with 2.5% in San Francisco, 8% in Boston and 7% in Seattle, all considered expensive cities to live, according to Bank of America.

Mortgage payments show a similar regional divide in many locations, though not in Phoenix and SF where both experienced the same hikes of 10%. Seattle was at a slightly higher 12%, according to Bank of America internal data.