3. Investing for retirement.

Millennials feel confident in their understanding of financial products, and 66 percent of them also agree—theoretically—that the more time they have untill retirement, the more aggressive their investing strategy can be. But—and it's a big but—that doesn't necessarily mean they're actually investing, with 66 percent saying they feel safer keeping most of their savings out of the market. In fact, more say they're confident in real estate investing—at 68 percent—than in stocks (65 percent), mutual funds (55 percent) or government bonds (53 percent).

In addition, 65 percent of millennials say that living through the financial crisis made them more conservative investors. That's kind of obvious when you look at all the investing accounts they could be using to prepare for retirement, but aren't—just 40 percent have a 401(k) or 403(b), 23 percent have a Roth or conventional IRA, 12 percent have a brokerage account and 14 percent a managed account. Still, 9 percent have invested in Bitcoin.

1. Home ownership

The chief motivator for 49 percent of millennials is to feel a sense of stability—which makes sense, since 69 percent also say they see themselves staying in the same area for the next 10 years. Other reasons include ownership rather than renting making financial sense and being able to modify it and make it their own. For 40 percent, a home is "a good investment." (That's not to say they really are all that savvy, since 68 percent of millennial homeowners have regrets about buying a home, wishing they had been more prepared—wishing they'd made bigger down payments and better home inspections going in.)

While millennials, both men and women, aspire to own a home, women are less likely to become homeowners—missing an important rung on the ladder to the American Dream.

In addition, men are more likely to see a first home as a "starter" home; 96 percent do, compared with 4 percent who do not, while 75 percent of women do, compared to 25 percent who do not. Oh, and 20 percent plan to raid their retirement accounts to buy one, while 30 percent of millennial homeowners already have done so.

2. Debt

Millennials have interesting notions about debt, with 69 percent agreeing with "You've only really 'made it' when you're debt free" while 44 percent agree that they are comfortable carrying debt. Perhaps predictably, given its high cost of living, millennials in California are significantly more likely than others to say they're comfortable doing so, with 53 percent admitting to a comfort level about mortgages, student loans, car loans/leases and credit cards.

In the rest of the country, just 40 percent of millennials feel that way. It's also way more important to millennial women to be debt free than it is to millennial men, at 58 percent compared with 41 percent. Still, 58 percent of millennials pay the full balance on their credit cards each month.

3. Investing for retirement.

Millennials feel confident in their understanding of financial products, and 66 percent of them also agree—theoretically—that the more time they have untill retirement, the more aggressive their investing strategy can be. But—and it's a big but—that doesn't necessarily mean they're actually investing, with 66 percent saying they feel safer keeping most of their savings out of the market. In fact, more say they're confident in real estate investing—at 68 percent—than in stocks (65 percent), mutual funds (55 percent) or government bonds (53 percent).

In addition, 65 percent of millennials say that living through the financial crisis made them more conservative investors. That's kind of obvious when you look at all the investing accounts they could be using to prepare for retirement, but aren't—just 40 percent have a 401(k) or 403(b), 23 percent have a Roth or conventional IRA, 12 percent have a brokerage account and 14 percent a managed account. Still, 9 percent have invested in Bitcoin.