Recession Briefing: Can’t Drive 55

What you need to know today to survive and thrive in the recession.

Just what Americans need as they try to dig out from the Great Recession: gas prices headed back toward $3 per gallon. The average price of a gallon of regular gasoline hit $2.70 on Thursday, according to the auto club AAA. That’s up 67 percent from this time last year. (Washington Post)

The decimated housing market may get considerably worse before it gets better, according to housing-industry professionals, who expect foreclosures and home-price declines to continue pressuring the sector through at least the first half of 2010. (Time)

Apartment vacancies hit a 30-year high in the fourth quarter, and rents fell as landlords scrambled to retain existing tenants and attract new ones. The vacancy rate ended the year at 8%, the highest level since Reis Inc., a New York research firm that tracks vacancies and rents in the top 79 U.S. markets, began its tally in 1980. (Wall Street Journal)…

Recession Briefing 4.23

What you need to know today to survive and thrive in the recession.

New jobless claims rose last week to 640,000. The number of people staying on jobless benefit rose by 93,000 to 6.14 million, the 12th straight week the figure has set a record. (Bloomberg)

Americans are riding out the recession by staying put. The Census bureau says the number of people who changed residences declined to 35.2 million from March 2007 to March 2008, the lowest number since 1962. (New York Times)

General Electric CEO Jeff Immelt said the global economic crisis has “fundamentally reset” the way companies do business and capitalism itself. (Associated Press)

Some homeowners are taking in roommates to take in some extra monthly cash as the recession deepens. (Chicago Tribune)

If you come across a good article or blog post about the recession pass it on.