A majority of Americans believe the middle class is losing ground economically, with fewer opportunities to buy a home, raise a family, or get ahead, according to a new CBS News poll released Thursday.
The survey found that 53% of respondents say opportunities for the middle class are decreasing, while 63% believe economic opportunities for wealthy Americans are increasing.
The poll found 21% of respondents believe opportunities are increasing for young people, compared with 15% who say the same for older Americans.
Further, large majorities say it's harder now to buy a home, find a good job, and raise a family than it was for earlier generations — particularly for young Americans.
Compared with previous generations, 83% of respondents said it's harder to buy a home, 77% said it's harder to raise a family, and 69% said it's harder to land a good job.
Overall, 71% said the income gap between the richest and the middle class is increasing, the survey found.
Still, a narrow majority — 51% — said their personal financial situation is fairly to very good, while 41% rated it fairly to very bad.
CBS News/YouGov surveyed 2,425 U.S. adults between Feb. 3–5. The margin of error is plus or minus 2.4 percentage points.
Mark Swanson ✉
Mark Swanson, a Newsmax writer and editor, has nearly three decades of experience covering news, culture and politics.
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