People are feeling more positive about their household finances than at any time since 2010, according to a survey.
The financial information company Markit said its Household Finance Index (HFI) has reached its highest level for over three years.
The HFI index hit 40.8 in June, which equalled the survey's previous high in February 2010.
But the reading still suggests that most people believe their household finances have deteriorated.
Any reading below 50 means that the majority has noticed a decline in its standard of living, while any reading above 50 signals an improvement.
"Households' perceptions of financial stability are now at a level unsurpassed over the past four-and-a-half years," said Tim Moore, a senior economist at Markit.
Job securityThere was also an improvement in people's expectations about their finances in the year ahead, although again most people still expect things to get worse.
The index measuring workplace activity fell from 53.3 in May to 52.8 in June, suggesting people are less confident about job security than they were.
But the figure was above 50 for the fifth month running.
"Better labour market conditions helped reinforce the upturn in households' financial expectations during June, as rising levels of workplace activity translated into diminishing job insecurities," said Tim Moore.
The Markit study was carried out by Ipsos MORI, who questioned 1500 people in Britain about their finances.
A study by the Institute of Fiscal Studies (IFS) last week found that while older people had become richer since the financial crisis, younger people had become poorer.
Source: BBC News - Business http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-22942315#sa-ns_mchannel=rss&ns_source=PublicRSS20-sa