San Diego ranks as the fourth most expensive city for housing in the U.S., which may come as no surprise to locals handing over monthly rent or mortgage checks.

The finding comes from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, whose recent report examines housing costs before, during and after the Great Recession.

Adding up expenditures like furnishings, utilities, supplies, household operations and shelter, housing costs forced San Diegans to spend roughly $22,000 on average in 2012.

The only three cities to beat out San Diego were Washington, D.C. (#1), San Francisco (#2) and New York (#3).

Households in D.C. spent an average of $17,603 on rent or mortgages alone, compared to the national average of $16,887, according to the report.

Among the cheapest metropolitan markets? Detroit, Miami and Cleveland.

U.S. residents spent about 33 percent of their yearly expenditures on housing – the largest percentage.

Another statistic found homeowners on average spent less on mortgage interest and charges than renters did on leases in 2012. But it's not all sunny for homeowners; they spent more than renters on maintenance, repairs, insurance and other similar expenses.

Read the bureau’s full findings here.