The Postal Service has managed to weather the tough economy, keeping roughly half of its post offices open.

While there are now only 413 offices listed for closure - a drop from about 700 earlier this year, officials warned that being on the list is no guarantee of closure.

The Postal Service has cited a drop in mail volume, e-mail, online bill paying and the recession as reasons for the closings. This year alone the postal service could be facing a deficit of $7 billion.

Also contributing to the closings is the $5 billion the post office must annually place in an account to pre-fund Medicare costs for retirees. Should the post office face a short fall at the end of the fiscal year, it will default on the payment in order to make payroll and ensure the agency can keep operating.

So far the Postal Service has managed to cut more than $6 billion in cost in 2009.