The 17 US cities where rents are soaring the most

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Renters in America spent a record amount of money on housing in 2017.

They paid $485.6 billion to landlords, about 1% more than they did in 2016, according to Zillow. This was the slowest pace in recent years because more renters transitioned into homeownership.

But tight supply and strong demand from buyers are likely to keep the cost of housing on the rise in 2018. "Despite recent changes to federal tax laws that have historically made homeownership financially attractive, the long-term dynamics pushing up home values and rents are unlikely to change significantly in 2018," said Aaron Terrazas, a senior economist at Zillow, in a release on Thursday.

The total value of America's housing market rose this year to $31.8 trillion. It was a 6.5% increase and the fastest pace in four years.

Here are the cities where rents increased the most in 2017, ranked in ascending order: