Half of New Jersey’s millenials looking forward to brighter future

The latest Fairleigh Dickinson PublicMind Poll finds consumer confidence in New Jersey is not showing much improvement.

Only 26 percent of residents believe they’ll be better off financially a year from now, said Krista Jenkins, poll director.

And only 23 percent of those surveyed expect business conditions will be better.

“It’s the political problems that continue to face the state that don’t seem to find a solution,” Jenkins said. “You layer on top of that the fact that there doesn’t appear to be any property tax relief coming, I think it’s just a gloomy outlook top to bottom.”

Millennials are comparatively upbeat, however, with 44 percent of the 18-to-34-year-old age group expecting things will get better.

“This could be some good news for the state as it suggests there’s hope for a new generation of residents to remain in the state in these post-college or post-teenage years rather than to head to other parts of the county where there’s a perception of greener pastures,” Jenkins said.