What would you do with an extra thou?

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Tabular Results
Survey Details

What would you do if an extra thousand dollars suddenly came your way? According the most recent Fairleigh Dickinson University poll, a majority of New Jerseyans would kiss it good–bye. The largest number of people (43%) would use it to pay off bills. Another 17% would spend it. Only one in three would put the money away in savings. And only 1 in 20 people would give their windfall to charity.

People with children have a different idea. A majority of them (52%) would use the bonus to pay off bills while only a third of people with no children would use the extra to pay down what they already owe.

Men may be more thrifty than women: 41% of men would save their bonus while only 27% of women say they’d bank it. Nearly half of women would use the extra to pay off bills.

This was one of many questions put to New Jersey consumers by Fairleigh Dickinson’s PublicMind and the Silberman College of Business. The entire report on New Jersey Consumer intentions for 2004 will be released at a press conference on Friday, January 23 at 11:00 am.

The survey of 800 randomly selected adults throughout New Jersey who participate in their household’s financial decisions was conducted by telephone from January 9 through January 19 and has a margin of error of +/- 3.5%.

Poll Analysis

Contact:

Peter Woolley,
director: 973.670.3239

James Almeida, survey analyst:
732-925-2271

Radio actuality line: (201) 692-2846.

For more information, please call (201) 692-7032.