Alabama residents have mixed views on the economy 42% say they’re struggling to make ends meet,
but 55% say they’ll be better off in 2010

AUBURN (August 3, 2009) — Auburn University’s Center for Governmental Services today released statewide polling results showing that many Alabama residents are suffering through this recession.

• 42 percent describe themselves as “struggling to make ends meet;”
  
  
• 47 percent say they are financially worse off today than a year ago;
  
  
• 19 percent of the state’s residents holding home mortgages worry that they will fall behind on their payments;
  
  
• 56 percent see interest rates for borrowers rising during the next 12 months; and
  
  
• 59 percent see more unemployment coming during the next 12 months.

However, contrasted with these downbeat opinions are signs of hope for the state’s economy:

• 55 percent of the state’s residents say they’ll be better off financially a year from now. [NOTE: Nationally, less than one-third of Americans asked an identical question by the University of Michigan in June said their finances will be better off next year.]
  
  
• 58 percent say they are “living comfortably (52%) or doing “better than ever” (5%) in this recession.
  
  
• 54 percent expect Alabama to come out of the recession at least as fast as the rest of the country.

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