Multiple new lines?

OK i know that new line is a bit of an issue in WP, you have to go to HTML view and enter
for a true new line.
But i needed few of them to move a pic lower so it doesnt mess up the look when right next to the featured image of the post. I placed

in the html, and when refreshed, they were all gone, just a blank row in the html, and when the post was published there was just one empty row when i needed few.
Is there a way to do that and why the new line is such a pain in WP? 🙂