McRae-Helena at a glance
- Population: 4,759 residents, the 150th-largest of 536 places in Georgia (US Census Bureau, Vintage 2023).
- 2020 Census base: 6,257 people at the 2020 Census, the baseline for the trend below (US Census Bureau).
- 2020 to 2023 change: down about 23.9% from the 2020 Census base to the 2023 estimate (US Census Bureau).
- Rank among Georgia places: 150th of the state's 536 Census places (US Census Bureau).
- Size percentile: about 72% of places in Georgia are smaller (US Census Bureau).
- Coordinates: it sits at 32.0636, -82.8969 in the US Census Bureau Gazetteer.
- Nearest larger cities: Eastman, GA (19 mi); Vidalia, GA (31 mi); Fitzgerald, GA (32 mi); Dublin, GA (33 mi); Baxley, GA (38 mi) — straight-line distances, US Census Bureau populations.
- Nearest smaller towns: Scotland, GA (5 mi); Alamo, GA (9 mi); Milan, GA (10 mi) — US Census Bureau populations.
What a personal loan costs in McRae-Helena
A personal loan is an installment loan: you receive a lump sum and repay it in fixed monthly payments over a set term, usually two to seven years.
APR is the figure that lets you compare like with like, since it wraps fees into the rate; run your own numbers with the personal loan calculator.
Lenders weigh your credit history, income and debts when they set the rate, and the term you choose then determines how that rate compounds into total cost.
Work out the payment you can comfortably carry each month first, then borrow no more than that figure supports.
Georgia lending rules that apply in McRae-Helena
Every figure in the table below is sourced to a publisher with a date; where a state does not publish a number, we say so rather than estimate.
| Rule | Detail | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Payday lending status | Prohibited (payday lending illegal in Georgia) Source says: "Payday lending is illegal in Georgia." | Georgia Department of Banking and Finance as of 2026-09-16 |
| Small-loan / installment lender licensing | Installment lender license required for loans of $3,000 or less Source says: "any entity making loans of $3,000.00 or less to individuals must be licensed with the Department as an installment lender". | Georgia Department of Banking and Finance as of 2026-09-16 |
| State lending regulator | Georgia Department of Banking and Finance (DBF) Source says: "The Non-depository division supervises mortgage lenders, mortgage brokers, and mortgage loan originators, as well as installment lenders, check cashers, and money transmitters". | Georgia Department of Banking and Finance as of 2026-09-16 |
| Installment Loan Act rate cap | 10% per annum of the face amount of the contract (licensed installment loans) Source says: "may charge interest at a rate not to exceed 10 percent per annum of the face amount of the contract". | Georgia Department of Banking and Finance as of 2026-09-16 |
| Maximum legal interest rate (usury cap) | See the latest published figure value_text left null: Georgia's rate ceilings are set by O.C.G.A. Title 7, Chapter 4 (O.C.G.A. §§ 7-4-1 to 7-4-21); the Department of Banking and Finance does not publish the figure and the official code host could not be fetched, so no figure is asserted. | Georgia Department of Banking and Finance as of 2026-09-16 |
How to compare offers in McRae-Helena
The steps below are worth completing first when you borrow in McRae-Helena:
- Pull your free credit reports and dispute any error — it is the cheapest way to improve the rate you are offered.
- Run your figures through the personal loan calculator on this site so you know the payment before a lender quotes one.
- Pre-qualify with at least three lenders and compare the APR, not the interest rate.
- Check that the lender is licensed in Georgia using the regulator named above.
- Read the disclosure for origination fees and any prepayment penalty before you sign.