Who’s Got It the Worst? Finally, the Answer.

Things may be turning around in some areas of the economy, but some demographics are still feeling the heat more than others. Here’s how it shakes out:

Age: Although workers of all ages have been impacted by the recession, statistics show that those over the age of 60 have been hurt worse than anyone else. In the past, older workers would retire if their career headed south. Nowadays, however, with 401Ks dwindling, more and more 60+ workers have joined the unemployment line and started looking for new work.

Race: Blacks and Hispanics have lost significantly more jobs since the recession began than whites. Overall, the unemployment rate for black workers is double that of white employees, with the national unemployment rate hovering at 15 percent for blacks and 12.7 percent for Hispanics, versus 9.5 percent overall.

Gender: It’s not called a “mancession” for nothing…

Career Scams to Avoid

As if the whole sub-prime mortgage debacle wasn’t scam enough, schemers have been out in fuller force since the recession began. According to the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center, there was a 33 percent uptick in scams last year.

Companies billing themselves as “career marketing specialists” have started specifically targeting professionals and managers in recent months, for example, capitalizing on the massive number of laid off executives looking for work anywhere they can.

To make matters worse, consumer advocates report that the sheer number of people working as scammers is on the rise, since an increasing number of unemployed workers are turning to identity theft and other money-making schemes as an additional source of income during the downturn.

Of course, the best protection against recession scammers is knowing what game they’re trying to pull…

The Sounds of the Recession

Over the past year, the recession has touched nearly every aspect of our lives—from the way we travel, to the way we dress, and even the things we eat—which is why it should come as no surprise that the economic downturn has impacted the way we listen to music, too. After all, great depressions have been known to spark cultural revolutions before.

So will this time be any different, and how exactly has the music industry shifted since this current recession began?

Country musicians and rap stars are changing their tune. While pop singers have pretty much ignored the recession so far, country stars have taken the downturn head on, tapping into the angst of the unemployed with songs like “Shuttin’ Detroit Down,” “Red White and Pink Slip Blues,” and “Prayer of a Common Man.” Rap stars have jumped on the bandwagon as well, coming out with albums that reflect the times, like Young Jeezy’s “The Recession,” and announcing the end of bling…

8 Vacation Spots: What’s Hot and Not in Recession

“Staycation” may be the buzzword of the recession thus far, but that doesn’t mean everyone is spending their holidays at home. With cheap Caribbean deals around and a surge in house-swapping, it’s seeming like the biggest post-recession change isn’t how much we’re traveling so much as where we’re traveling to.

Destinations like Hawaii, Mexico, and the Disney amusement parks all report that they’ve been hit hard by the downturn, even while the cruise industry and campgrounds report record numbers of tourists. We took a closer look some of summer’s most popular destinations to see what’s hot (and not)–so you can see where there might be bargains, or too many recession travelers.

Hawaii
Worldwide economic fears have diminished Hawaii’s tourism industry, with the state experiencing its lowest month for tourism in 18 years back in April and hotel occupancy rates dropping to 75 percent…

Recession Diet: Comfort Food

If you’ve noticed more people packing on the pounds as of late, it isn’t your imagination. As the number of unemployed workers has grown over the past year, so has the average American’s waistline, a phenomenon nutritionists are calling “recession obesity.”

Of course this news should hardly come as a surprise to anyone who’s been paying attention at the grocery store checkout line. Sales of junk foods like doughnuts and chips have skyrocketed, while fewer cost-conscious customers are buying organic fruits and veggies at the same rate they were in years past.

For an even better indicator of where our waistlines are heading, the best place to look may end up being the grocery store shelves.

What We’re Consuming
Craft Beers
Although overall beer sales have fallen 1.6 percent this year, business for craft brewers—the kind who make fewer than 60 barrels of beer a year—has actually increased, with sales growing by 6 percent…

Comparing Sharing: Should You Rent Handbags, Movies and Pets?

Mom always told you to share. But it turns out her advice might not always be best—at least, not when it comes to saving money during a recession.

According to the Washington Post, companies with a business model based around the concept of sharing are faring well lately, with car services like ZipCar seeing a 70 percent bump in membership since last year and the book-swapping website BookMooch increasing its membership roster by 30 percent.

While sharing sure sounds recession-friendly, we couldn’t help but wonder if it works out as well for the people doing the sharing as it does for the companies themselves. To find out, we’ve did the math on some of the most popular sharing-based businesses.

HANDBAGS
For a monthly membership fee of $5 to $15, sites like Bag Borrow or Steal and From Bags to Riches let users rent handbags for months at a time. But membership fees aren’t all users have to pay, since actually renting the designer purse can cost an additional $20 to $200 (or more!) per month…

How Colleges Can Save You Money

Remember college? The late night study sessions, the lack of responsibility, the keg parties, and—best of all—all the stuff you used to get for free. (Or at least, it seemed free.) Who knew prescription medications and gym memberships would be so expensive in the real world?

You don’t need to re-enroll to take advantage of the many discounts given to college kids. Many universities offer reduced (or free!) services to alumni and non-students, too, assuming you’re willing to work out in a gym surrounded by 20-year-olds. Some of what you can get from campus…

Work Off Your Costs

These days it might not be easy to find the cash to pay all your monthly expenses, from rent to membership fees. Yes, you can negotiate for lower rates, but there are also ways to create your own discounts—with a little labor.

According to the Times, many landlords have started shaving hundreds off rent for tenants willing help out with tasks like changing lightbulbs and taking out the building’s trash. But these “super-tenants” aren’t the only ones getting discounts on their monthly costs. Across the country, more and more companies are letting their favorite clients handle work exchange for taking money off the dues and fees they’d otherwise be paying.

And why not? Everyone’s a winner, since the company gets a free service and the customer gets a discount on dues. Wondering what kind of businesses are up for letting you volunteer your time in exchange for a better rate? A few ideas:

Landlords
Whether you volunteer to pick up packages for other tenants or work as a weekend handyman—there’s no limit to the services you can offer to take over for your building’s landlord…

Discount Dental

While a number of creative ways exist to find affordable health care coverage, one question remains unanswered for many: What about my teeth?

Poor dental health has been linked to a whole host of other medical conditions. And to make matters worse, the cost of a visit to the dentist’s office is rising so quickly that even basic cleanings and fillings have become unaffordable for many.

So what’s an uninsured person to do? For many, discount clinics run by accredited dental schools have stepped in to fill the void, while other consumers are choosing to leave the country entirely for dental work at half the cost. But those aren’t your only options. We’ve put together a round-up of popular ways to get discounts on your dentistry, even without insurance…

Six Splurge-Worthy Buys

At this point, we’ve all heard about bargain shopping in the recession—the budget buys, the sample sales, and the deals we can’t wait to see pop up. But what about the things that never make it to the sale rack? Are we just supposed to do without?

In short answer: No. At least not according to “experts” like personal shopper and stylist Jill Markiewicz, who tells Forbes that “buying a few expensive pieces that you truly want” can actually save you more money in the long run than picking up “a bunch of discounted items” at sample sales all over town.

Of course, Markiewicz’s ideas of necessary buys included Hermès bags and $115,000 Porsche Panameras, which don’t really fly for those of us living on Planet Earth.

So what types of purchases are worth splurging on and paying full price, even during a tight economy? As they say, you get what you pay for, and some areas can’t be scrimped on, no matter what kind of economy we’re living in. Here are a few…