Canadians’ interest in investments made its largest leap in more than six years, according to a national poll earlier this month for Manulife Financial.

The 32nd quarterly Manulife Investor Sentiment Index jumped 11 points to +34, the largest single quarterly swing since the surveys began in 1999 — and just one point shy of an all-time high of +35 in mid-2000.

“This is a very strong result and likely reflects other economic signs that indicate healthy long-term interest in investing,” said Bruce Gordon, Manulife Financial’s senior executive vp and general manager, Canada. “The TSX recently has hit record highs, real estate markets remain active in Canada, and five out of six of our previous polls suggested Canadians are very confident in long-term investing.”

The latest survey of 1,001 Canadians by Maritz Research found all 10 investment categories and vehicles gaining ground from the last national poll in September, as seven categories registered double-digit increases.

“This latest poll suggests consumers remained extremely focused on a broad range of long-term investments,” Gordon added. “That’s in spite of some concerns about real estate markets in the United States and impact from new tax treatment rules for income trusts here in Canada.”

Among investment categories, investing in balanced funds, fixed income and their own home showed the strongest gains, up 16, 15 and 14 points respectively. Investment property regained nine points after falling in September, while the index for cash rose seven points. Equities also registered a three-point gain.

Responding to a separate question, more than half of Canadians polled said they’re better off now than five years ago (56%), compared to 25% who feel they are in the same financial position. Eighteen per cent said they feel they’re worse off than in 2001.

When asked about their financial goals, those surveyed said their top priority is to pay down their consumer debts. Twenty-five per cent chose overall debts as their top concern, identical to a year ago. Paying down their mortgage ranked second (14%), just ahead of saving for retirement (13%). Ten% said their top concern is ensuring they have enough money if they become disabled or ill, while seven% said saving to buy a home was their top priority.