Protect yourself in a recession

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ROAD TO RESCUE

• Home prices up for 1st time in 3 years
• New home sales: 'Really good news'
• Wall Street: Here comes the hard part
• 7 regional banks fail
• Banker: "TARP helped avert a global calamity"

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- The financial crisis has grabbed the attention of voters less than two weeks before the presidential election, but the real trouble - a deep recession - will linger long after the race for the White House ends. Here are some considerations to keep in mind.

First, although an official recession has not been declared yet, about 70% of economists believe the country is either in a recession or heading toward one, according to a recent Blue Chip Economic Indicator survey.

Economists say that this recession is likely to be longer and deeper than the last two recessions we had that lasted only eight months.

In fact, some experts say we could be in a recession for at least a year. And that would be the lengthiest downturn since 1981-1982.

Right now the unemployment rate is at 6.1%, and the economy has shed about 750,000 jobs year to date. Some economists are predicting an unemployment rate of 9% -and that would translate into at least 1 million jobs lost, says economist Hugh Johnson of Johnson Illington Advisors.

So far this year, there have been more than two million foreclosures. In a long, drawn out recession, these numbers will also rise.

The number one thing you want to protect right now is your job. So, make sure you're keeping your skills up to date. Work on high profile projects; maintain your contacts by joining professional groups and be visible.

Of course, if possible, start setting aside some money just in case you have an emergency. In this kind of environment, you want as much cash on hand as you can.

College graduates are going to be facing some tough times after they graduate, so make sure you keep your job search flexible in case it's taking longer than expected to land your dream job.

And don't forget that there are people who will actually do well and benefit in this kind of environment. Folks who are are buying languishing assets in housing and/or in the stock market.

So, if you do have a good cash cushion and you're looking for opportunity, you could really benefit in this kind of environment.