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Cost of living, pay and housing

35.11° N · 91.83° W · GEOID 0543220

McRae

White County, Arkansas · part of the Searcy, AR metro

Computed by Citytistics from 13 public sources · Data bundle checked 2026-11-14 · How we calculate

Limited data population under 5,000

ArkansasMcRae, ARMcRaeMcRae

The short answer

McRae is home to 623 people. Median household income is $35,132 a year and median rent is $668 a month, 22.8% of income (a ratio of two medians, not any one household's burden). Rent pressure is lighter than in most places. The median home is valued at $99,400, about 2.8x annual median household income.

Median gross rent
$668
51% below the median place
Median household income
$35,132
56% below the median place
Median home value
$99,400
69% below the median place
Unemployment
5.8%
19% above the median place

Compared with the median of the 6,645 places we track. The bundle was checked 2026-11-14; each measure may refer to an older release.

What stands out about McRae

  • The median household earns $35,132 a year, less than in 98% of the 2,480 places under 10,000 people we track. It is the 3rd-lowest of 71 Arkansas places.
  • Median rent is $668 a month, lower than in 98% of places its size.
  • 69% of renter households spend 30% or more of income on rent, a higher share than in 91% of places its size. It is the 2nd-highest of 69 Arkansas places.
  • The median home is valued at $99,400, less than in 95% of places its size.
  • Owning with a mortgage costs only about $195 a month more than the median rent, a smaller gap than in 84% of places its size.
01

Moving to McRae

White County gains about 5.8 residents per 1,000 a year to moves between counties.

Moved in3,682
Moved out3,337
Net+345

Where people come from and where they go, top counties

Lonoke County, AR693476+217
Pulaski County, AR358368−10
Faulkner County, AR254238+16
Cleburne County, AR210232−22
Independence County, AR145101+44
Jackson County, AR72137−65
Craighead County, AR91
Woodruff County, AR79

Within Arkansas, other states or abroad

Arrivals
Leavers
Within ArkansasOther states

Income per tax return

Arrivals$52K
Leavers$50K

People on tax returns who moved between counties, from IRS migration data, 2022 to 2023. Figures are for all of White County; flows under 20 returns are not published.

Who moves here
5.4% of residents arrived from another county in the past year, 2.1% from another state. County figure.
Who arrives and who leaves
Households moving into White County report $51,600 a year in income on average; those leaving, $49,800.
Income you would need
$26,700 a year to rent the median home at the 30% line. From your city
Rent or buy
Median rent is $668 a month; owners with a mortgage pay $863 a month including taxes and insurance, on a median home of $99,400.
Getting to work
24 minutes each way on average; 4.8% work from home.
If it is close but not quite
Brookhaven, MS matches it on character. Compare the two
Income of households moving out7
$49,791
29% below the median place
Income of households moving in7
$51,550
27% below the median place
Net movers per 1,000 people7
5.8
above the median place (median -0.6)
All 5 moving measures
MeasureMcRaeAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Moved here in the past year1County figure5.4%6% below
Moved from another state1County figure2.1%7% above
Net movers per 1,000 people7County figure5.8above (median -0.6)
Income of households moving in7County figure$51,55027% below
Income of households moving out7County figure$49,79129% below
02

What it costs to live here

Owner costs with a mortgage is $863, 54% below the median place.

McRae22.8%
Typical place20.4%

Share of the median household income that goes to the median rent. Above 30% is the usual stress line.

Income needed to rent
$26,720
a year, at the 30% line
Rent to income
22.8%
12% above the median place
Home price to income
2.8x
26% below the median place

Could you afford it?

The median rent would take
23%
comfortably under the 30% line
Left after rent, in US prices
$27,000
a year, prices not adjusted
Vs the typical household here
Same
as the median household

Uses the median rent in McRae, $668 a month. It runs in your browser and stores nothing.

Moving from somewhere else? Work out the salary you would need in McRae.

Sponsored · exampleMoving to McRae? Compare quotes from licensed movers. No partner is signed yet. Sponsored offers are always labelled and never change the data.
Owner costs with a mortgage1
$863
54% below the median place
Property tax paid (median)1
$530
84% below the median place
Median home value1
$99,400
69% below the median place
All 15 cost and housing measures
MeasureMcRaeAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Median gross rent1$66851% below
Rent to income122.8%12% above
Property tax rate10.5%42% below
Home price to income12.8x26% below
Fair market rent, 2 bedrooms2County figure$94841% below
HUD area median income3County figure$75,60030% below
Property tax paid (median)1$53084% below
Median home value1$99,40069% below
Home prices, 1-year change4County figure1.5%53% below
Home prices, 5-year change4County figure48.6%6% below
Homeownership160.8%8% below
Renters paying 30%+168.6%36% above
Owner costs with a mortgage1$86354% below
Vacant homes1County figure12.6%78% above
Median year built119780% above
03

Work and pay

Commutes by transit is 0.0%, below the median place (median 0.8%).

Commutes by transit1
0.0%
below the median place (median 0.8%)
Median household income1
$35,132
56% below the median place
Income per person1
$22,462
44% below the median place
All 10 work and pay measures
MeasureMcRaeAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Median household income1$35,13256% below
Income per person1$22,46244% below
Unemployment1County figure5.8%19% above
Average annual pay5County figure$47,48728% below
Pay growth, 1 year5County figure3.1%16% below
Jobs5County figure26,59182% below
Poverty rate114.4%34% above
Mean commute124 min2% below
Works from home1County figure4.8%61% below
Commutes by transit10.0%below (median 0.8%)
04

Who lives here

Homes with broadband is 80.4%, 13% below the median place.

Homes with broadband1
80.4%
13% below the median place
High school or higher1
81.8%
11% below the median place
Household size1
2.2
13% below the median place
All 9 people measures
MeasureMcRaeAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Population16236646th largest
Population change since 20206-0.3%below (median 1.1%)
Median age142.59% above
Bachelor's or higher1County figure20.4%36% below
High school or higher181.8%11% below
Household size12.213% below
Born abroad1County figure2.1%77% below
No health insurance17.5%17% above
Homes with broadband180.4%13% below
05

Life in McRae

5 sites are on the National Register of Historic Places.

  • Booth-Weir House listed 1991
  • Caldwell House listed 1991
  • Childers Farmstead listed 1992
  • McDonald, Emmett, House listed 1992
  • McRae Jail listed 1992

Businesses per 10,000 residents (county figures)

Restaurants and bars18.9 −9%
Shops39.1 +29%
Arts, recreation and fitness1.3 −68%
Doctors' offices and clinics20.8 +3%
Child care centers1.2 −48%

Counts businesses with paid staff, so small owner-run shops are not included.

Arts, recreation and fitness per 10k8
1.3
68% below the median place
Child care centers per 10k8
1.2
48% below the median place
Students per teacher10
11.6
25% below the median place
All 9 schools and local life measures
MeasureMcRaeAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Public schools10County figure27200% above
Public school students10County figure12,342152% above
Students per teacher10County figure11.625% below
Restaurants and bars per 10k8County figure18.99% below
Shops per 10k8County figure39.129% above
Arts, recreation and fitness per 10k8County figure1.368% below
Doctors' offices and clinics per 10k8County figure20.83% above
Child care centers per 10k8County figure1.248% below
National Register listings9562% below
06

Safety, weather and risk

Annual precipitation is 51.4 in, 17% above the median place.

No crime figure yet. Either the city police department did not report to the FBI for the latest year, or our monthly fetch has not reached McRae. Larger places are fetched first.

Annual precipitation11
51.4 in
17% above the median place
July average high11
91°F
5% above the median place
Average temperature11
61°F
11% above the median place
All 9 weather and risk measures
MeasureMcRaeAmong 6,645 placesVs median
July average high11County figure91°F5% above
January average low11County figure31°F21% above
Average temperature11County figure61°F11% above
Annual precipitation11County figure51.4 in17% above
Natural hazard risk12County figure85.77% below
Hurricane risk12County figure54.623% below
Tornado risk12County figure91.913% above
Wildfire risk12County figure79.430% above
Heat wave risk12County figure88.42% below
08

McRae in 2030: where the trends point

If recent trends hold, the median rent will take about 23% of the median income in 2030, up from 23% now.

Citytistics projections to 2030: each figure's own trend, blended with the typical trend across the places we rate, eased toward long-run US growth and carried forward from the latest release. The range is where 80% of places landed when we tested the same method on past releases.

MeasureLatest2030 projectionLikely rangeAvg. per year
Median rent$668/mo (2024)$860/mo$700 to $1,040/mo+4.2%
Median household income$35,132 (2024)$44,000$37,000 to $52,000+3.8%
Median home value$99,400 (2024)$139,000$101,000 to $191,000+5.7%
Population617 (2025)620590 to 650+0.1%

The median home would be worth 3.2 years of the median income in 2030, against 2.8 now.

A projection of recent trends, not a prediction of the economy or advice to buy or sell. How we project.

09

Places like McRae

The closest matches on income, rent, home value, education and age, and the places nearby.

PlaceRentIncome
Brookhaven, MS$740$36,685Compare
Middlesborough, KY$598$31,106Compare
Galax, VA$743$38,675Compare
Highland Park, MI$688$29,309Compare
Highland Park, MIGalax, VAMiddlesborough, KYBrookhaven, MSMcRae, ARMcRaeBrookhavenMiddlesboroughGalaxHighland ParkMcRaeBrookhavenMiddlesboroughGalaxHighland Park

Common questions

Is McRae a good place to live?

It depends on what you need, so here is what the numbers say. The median household earns $35,132 a year, less than in 98% of the 2,480 places under 10,000 people we track. It is the 3rd-lowest of 71 Arkansas places. Median rent is $668 a month, lower than in 98% of places its size. On cost, space and class size it scores 28 out of 100 for families. See how it ranks with your own weights.

Is McRae expensive to live in?

The median rent takes 22.8% of the median household income, against 20.4% in the typical place we track. Housing is a heavier load here than usual. The median home is valued at $99,400.

What salary do you need to live in McRae?

To rent the median home without spending more than 30% of income on rent, a household needs about $26,720 a year. Work it out from your current city.

What places are similar to McRae?

On income, rent, home value, education and age, the closest matches are Brookhaven, MS, Middlesborough, KY, Galax, VA and Highland Park, MI.

Sources and methods

The small numbers beside each measure point here. Every dataset is public; links go to the publisher.

  1. American Community Survey 5-year estimates · US Census Bureau · 2020 to 2024 estimatesTables B01002, B01003, B05002, B07003, B08013, B08301, B15003, B17001, B19013, B19301, B23025, B25002, B25003, B25010, B25035, B25064, B25070, B25077, B25088, B25103, B28002, S2701
  2. Fair Market Rents · US Department of Housing and Urban Development · Fiscal year 2027
  3. Income Limits · US Department of Housing and Urban Development · Fiscal year 2026
  4. House Price Index · Federal Housing Finance Agency · Latest release, retrieved 2026-11-14
  5. Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages · US Bureau of Labor Statistics · 2025 annual averages
  6. Population Estimates · US Census Bureau · Vintage 2025
  7. SOI Tax Stats, county-to-county migration · Internal Revenue Service · Tax years 2022 to 2023Counts tax returns and the people on them; flows under 20 returns are suppressed.
  8. County Business Patterns · US Census Bureau · 2023 data
  9. National Register of Historic Places · National Park Service · Listings through 2026-05-22
  10. Common Core of Data · National Center for Education Statistics · 2024 release
  11. 1991-2020 climate normals · NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information · Series updated 2026-11-05Averages for 1991 to 2020 computed from NOAA's county climate series (nClimDiv).nClimDiv county series
  12. National Risk Index · Federal Emergency Management Agency · Latest release, retrieved 2026-11-14NRI data and maps

Derived by Citytistics from the tables above: rent to income (B25064, B19013); property tax rate (B25103, B25077); home price to income (B25077, B19013).

What stands out compares McRae with places of a similar size, using only figures measured for McRae itself; county and metro figures never count. Survey figures are estimates with margins of error. Formulas and definitions: methodology. API: /api/v1/places/mcrae-arkansas

Citytistics. “McRae, Arkansas.” Data as of 2026-11-14. https://www.citytistics.com/city/mcrae-arkansas/

This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.