Californians expect economic slump

A majority of Californians expect the economy to worsen over the next year as housing sales plunge and more residents lose their homes to foreclosure, according to the results of a poll conducted by the Public Policy Institute of California. Fifty-nine percent of adults expect “bad times” financially over the next 12 months, a jump of 10 percentage points since June, according to the survey. “There has been a significant shift in attitude this year,” Mark Baldassare, the president of the institute, said in a statement. “For so many people, the feeling of overall financial well-being is tied to the value of their homes, something that seems increasingly threatened as they see sales slow, prices dip, and foreclosures rise.” Pessimism about the state’s economy cuts across all regions and income levels and is similar for those who own and rent homes, according to the poll.