What's Up with Escort Rates??

[Guest Tampa Yankee]

Precisely... that is what's up.

 

(Before proceeding let me say that I am on record that escorts have the right to set their rates and we as clients have the right to rent or not. I have no problem at all with the free market concept. BTW clients drive up rates not escorts -- they just charge what the market will bear. Let us remeber that they are not charitable organizations.)

 

I am amazed at the increase in asking rates these days in the face of a faltering economy. In second echelon markets asking rates have risen to 200 and better -- 250 and occasionally even 300 are seen. It seems that 200 in the top markets is ancient history.

 

MY point is this: If this type of rate inflation occurs in the faltering economy what rates will the rise in the economy bring us??

 

For these rates not only would I expect an extended orgasm (30 minutes would be nice) but also an out-of-body experience (mine, not his) :-)

 

TY(getting closer and closer to the sidelines by choice) :-(

[Boston Guy]

Morning, TY.

 

You may recall a thread about this topic a year ago. I said then that I thought that the availability of this Web site was driving up prices all over, because escorts in unknown places would see what people were charging in LA and NYC and say "I should charge that, too."

 

At the time, I said that I wouldn't pay more than $200 per hour, anywhere, at any time, for anybody. At rates higher than that, I begin to think that I'm being just plain stupid with my money and I'm happier going someplace nice and reading a book. I still won't pay more than $200 per hour and it doesn't handicap me. In fact, I've had lots of escorts who wanted $250 or $300 come back to me immediately when I simply said that I don't pay more than $200 and say "OK, if you don't tell people I charged you this, I'm happy getting together for $200."

 

Even in LA and NYC, which to me seem like they have the highest prices on average, lots of guys are available at the $200 level -- guys who are perfectly able and willing to provide a very nice time. If I'm interested in spending two hours with someone I don't know, I ask what they charge for two hours.

 

Sometimes I get a crude reply back disparaging my arithmetic skills or suggesting that there must have been something wrong with my upbringing to even ask such a question. Or sometimes an escort will suggest that if I have to ask the question, I cannot afford to hire him. I always find this amusing; it's been my experience that the wealthier someone is, the more careful they tend to be with how they spend their money. The wealthiest guy I've ever spent any amount of time with used to hate to pay more than $100 per night for a hotel room because he was "just going to sleep there" -- even though he could have easily bought any of the hotels he was staying in.

 

When an escort responds rudely to my request for the rates he charges, I thank him and appreciate having found out the easy (and cheap) way that he is rude, into himself and doesn't understand much about customer service. I always assume that attitude will transfer into the other services he provides.

 

On the other hand, I've been told very nicely by some guys that the rate they charge for two hours is twice what they charge for one hour. I accept this and it's their right to charge whatever they want. But a two-hour appointment is much more efficient for an escort, since the amount of time they are getting paid for compared to travel time, time spent getting ready, etc. is much higher. And this is reflected, I guess, in how many guys readily offer some kind of discount for the second hour -- anything from $50 to $100 off is common, again in my experience.

 

Most amusing are the guys who charge eight or more times their hourly rate for spending a night. I guess there must be lots of guys who pay this, but it sure seems like a lot of money just to sleep with someone, especially given the existence of lots of guys who are delighted to receive $800 or $1000 to spend the night.

 

There was one thread here a long time ago when two clients made two separate remarks that surprised me. The first said that he felt that he would be 'taking advantage' of an escort by asking for a reasonable rate. Well, $200 per hour, at an hourly rate, translates to $400,000 per year. We know that escorts don't work at this rate every day, all day long. But we also have heard from those escorts who have been willing to talk about it that (a) the money is great and (b) the money is high enough that they can work short hours and still have lots of time for the gym and other things they want to do. Hiring someone at a $200 per hour rate does not in any way feel like taking advantage of that person to me.

 

The other client said he 'enjoyed' paying top dollar for escorts. Well, if it helps someone's ego to pay top dollar for something, then they should do it. If that's what they feel they need to do to feel good about themselves, then more power to them. But most of us would feel a little foolish paying $3.00 per gallon of gas at a station when another station across the street was charging $2.00 per gallon.

 

Finally, there are the escorts who get insulted (or at least act that way) if you offer to negotiate rates with them. I've been told that it's 'insulting' for someone to do so and that the services they offer are 'personal services' and shouldn't be subjected to negotiation.

 

In those cases, I thank the person for their time and generally walk away. If someone who is charging $200 per hour for their time doesn't want to discuss how much they would charge for multiple hours, that's ok. It's their right. But I think the argument that it's insulting or that the services they offer are somehow different than the services offered by other professionals is a false one.

 

Attorneys, architects, engineers, consultants and countless other professionals routinely negotiate their prices. The bigger the deal the more certain that it will be the subject of negotiation. Someone who doesn't understand this is either inexperienced or naive. Someone who feels insulted when someone else offers to negotiate a price for a certain amount of services is probably too young to understand the value that can come from accepting the offer to negotiate.

 

Negotiation for personal services isn't personal -- unless you count the fact that someone is willing to negotiate seriously with you as a complement on the services you offer and the other person's perception of you as a good businessman. Good negotiations produce deals where each party is happier at the end of the negotiations than they were at the beginning. Good negotiations are precisely not about trying to screw one party (well, maybe in this case, if we slightly alter the use of the verb screw here ;-)), but rather should focus on how to make both parties happy.

 

I don't care if someone if is filing a suit on my behalf, designing an addition to my home, cleaning my teeth or sucking my dick. They are all personal services, all of which take time and experience to do well, and all of which can be obtained happily through good negotiations.

 

BG

 

ps: Sorry for running off on such a tangent. It's just that there are times when I want to reach out to one of these young escorts and say to him "I wish I could spend two days with you teaching you about the benefits of negotiation!" They really don't get it, many of them, and that's not surprising, because it's a skill that takes time to acquire and one that many fail to ever get good at, much less master. But it offers so many benefits in so many parts of our lives that it makes me frustrated when I see an escort look down his nose and think he's being insulted. But here I go again... :-)

[Bilbo]

Remember when negotiating with an escort that it is a two way street. I offer a number, you offer a number, we discuss and probably come down somewhere in between. I have had a disappointingly high percentage of negotiations where the client expects me to come up with all of the numbers. Do your part of the job, guys!

[Guest DCescortBOY]

i just make sure that my rates are below talvin's (hey... i'll admit i don't have the body that he does!) but above the other people in town (hey... they don't have the dick or the unique charm i have!).

 

 

hehe... "unique charm"

[Guest DevonSFescort]

Hey TY,

 

This topic promises to be a scorcher -- it's fascinating to me, looking at it from this side, because I charge fairly low rates by today's standards ($150/hour). Believe me, I often think about raising my fee, for the following reasons:

 

* not sure I can maintain current high volume of business over the long run; higher rate = fewer clients "necessary" per week.

* I've noticed that people who seem used to paying $200/hr or more will often go ahead and tip me $50 or more, plus just be more likely to go for "big ticket" items like overnights or longer dates with dinner, etc. So I wonder if I'd attract more of this type of client if I had higher rates.

* to put that last point another way, am I being completely overlooked by the big spenders who associate quality with the higher price?

 

on the other hand, some reasons I haven't yet had the nerve to hike my rates...

 

* the reason I'm so busy may have at least partially to do with $150 being "the sweet spot" for a lot of guys. Would the dropoff be greater than the extra money gained per visit?

* Rod Hagen's success notwithstanding, is there a glass ceiling for guys with only 6 inches? Do big spenders, even -- particularly, for my purposes -- big spenders who aren't size queens, just naturally feel like they should be getting an 8" cock, or at least a 7, with all that cash?

* as the rates go up, is there a higher stake associated with particular outcomes; do I get more guys with long checklists of things that had damn well better happen in an hour? If so, do I want to deal with the added sense of pressure?

* would my client base tend to become less diverse (and therefore less interesting) as the rates rose?

 

Another reason not to hike just dropped away -- I've been saving money to move apartments because I figured (correctly, as it turned out) that being self-employed for less than a year would send a red flag to the property management people. I was able to assuage their concerns by offering to pay six months' rent up front. Which means I'm all taken care of for awhile and can afford to get more "experimental" in my pricing, if I decide to.

 

On the other hand, I'd like to continuing escorting as long as I can. I was one of the escorts that got all pissy with Pickwick over in the "?s for Rod Hagen" threads, but I distinctly did NOT claim to have a real career prior to escorting. I spent a lot of time bogged down in the wayward-starving-artist-doing-unsatisfying-jobs syndrome. Yes, I always got promoted in the jobs, and ended up managing a lot of college graduates (admittedly not high achievers), and developed a lot of good intangible skills (which serve me well in escorting), but they weren't the kind of credentials that cover up for having no degree. (And all the things I'd want to get a degree are the kinds of fields that you can't make a living in...) What I'm saying is that I think compared to a lot of the other escorts I DO have a lot to lose by making a stupid pricing decision, or a bad marketing decision in general. I am in no hurry to get back to the world where I WAS a clockwatcher.

 

So anyway, I'd love to hear anybody's feedback about some of the questions I raised above -- from clients in all the different spending ranges and from escorts in all the different pricing ranges. Not so much to get advice on whether I should raise my rates (though I'm sure I'll get plenty of that too), but to get a sense of how different people look at these issues.

[Guest dstud4hire]

hey Boston guy, another great post! I have to pay more attention to your posts, cause I like how you express yourself..why haven't I noticed that before?

 

 

Well, anyway, even though I like how you express yourself, I don't necesarilly agree or find myself on the same page as you do on this thread.

 

First off, I guess my rates are too low then ! (don't worry guys, I won't raise them !) But at $150 an hour, I sort of thought that was a standard fee, especially in the MIdwest. I however, agree in charging what the market will bear, (isn't that what our economy is based upon..supply and demand?) but I also do work on the West Coast from time to time, actually, in various parts of the country, and still keep my rate at the price, though I have been told that I could probably get more, even here in lil 'ol St. Louis.

 

Well, unless I have the body of a porn star and happen to perform in movies (which I don't on either acct,) then I can NEVER see charging more.

 

Perhaps the guys who are charging more, in some cases, work for an agency? And they do take a pretty good chunk from what I have been told, so if the escort is going to take home the standard $150, charging $250 makes sense I would imagine from the agency point of view.

 

Re: Negotiations...hmm interesting point of view. Generally I don't, though I guess in hind sight, I have engaged in it, but actually, it's been pretty small stuff actually...the terms of the airfare, or other acoutrement associated with our date. I guess where I have negotiated the most has been where the client is taking me to a foreign destination or some place in which one could think of it as a vacation destination for several days, but other than that, there again, I do not engage in much negotiation. Someone either wants my time or not, and is willing to pay it or not.

 

BUT I CAN ASSURE you, if you do not like my rates, I WOULD NEVER EVER disrespect someone by sending him a rude response as to his offer. THERE HAVE BEEN MANY TIMES that we simply cannot come to a term of agreement. I handle the situation with aplomb. Afterall, it is STILL my reputation on the line, whether they become my client or not, and you never know when they might at some point, become my client.

 

However, there are some reasons why I do not really negotiate, and also believe my overnight and hourly rates are jutified. First of all, this is a part time job for me, so I can't do my escorting as often as I would like to, though I stay fairly busy fortunately.

 

2nd of all, (and please don't mistake this for attitude, just HIGH self confidence) I believe that what I offer a client is VERY valuable. At app. $800 for an overnight, I am offering them a very special companion. My 'dates' walk away from the experience, I believe, and have been told, feeling a multitude of things...from very special, to being #1, from pumped up to all warm inside. My clients come from a variety of back grouds and reasons why they hire me..from "it's easier then going to the bars" to "I'm married, and want to explore this side of myself"

 

While you may not understand why that over night fee is that amount, esp if it is for 'just sleeping with someone" it's a lot more than that...it's cuddling with someone, it's being there for them whenever they want (including sexually...though always consensual, obviously)...it's giving them a safe environment to allow them to be who they want to be...and it's creating an ambiance to serve their needs by either being an attentive listener, to just the small things like me bringing a bottle of wine to the evening. All this may sound easy for the escort, but in actuality, while parts of it (like being good to another person, etc....is easy) it still does take a skill and a talent to do well. If I am having an 'off' night or am experiencing my own problems in my own life...that has nothing to do with the client. They are still expecting a great time, and so for that kind of fee, I had beter learn how to keep my own issues where they belong, and make sure the client is having an AWESOME time.

 

So, yes BG, I feel the overnight rate is very justified. But I guess it's all relative. I can't see charging more than the aforementioned, yet, I am sure there are guys who charge more as well as pay more and see no problem with it.

 

Ok, in re-reading this, perhaps it's not that I disagree with you totally, I guess I just wanted to explain why I feel the rates are what they are. I guess I might be speaking to the choir, because you realize what the client is getting for his fee he pays.

 

soooo....my point is? well, just rambling...wanted to explain, that is all! Thx for listening!

[Guest dstud4hire]

ooops, I also meant to throw a compiment the direction of TY as well...just complimented Boston guy on an interesting post, (and his words were...hell, it sparked another long essay on my part) but also, TY, you have a way of sparking some interesting thread! Keep it up!

[Guest Kenny021]

Boston Guy has it exactly right.

I completely agree with the statement that "clients raise the prices of escorts". As long as someone is willing to pay exhorbitant fees ...and there always are clients who are more than willing...some actually make statements that the escort should be charging more money as they are well worth it..."If you ask it, they will come and pay it". Like BG, I have my limits and will NOT PAY a penny extra to ANYONE who requests more.

Was in Montreal over New Years weekend and e-mailed Nikko, supposedly the BEST ESCORT in Montreal, requesting info. He replied that he charged $250 (canadian) per hour.....this equated to over $400 US dollars. I said "thanks but no thanks". I posted this on a Montreal thread and you wouldn't believe the number of clients who said that he was well worth it AND MORE, etc. etc. Again, when escorts see this, why the hell should they ask less? The bottom line is THERE ALWAYS WILL BE SOMEONE WILLING TO PAY THE OUTRAGEOUS FEES...I am not one of them and perhaps if there were more people like me and Boston Guy, the fees wouldn't skyrocket. I guess they've heard of inflation rates but really don't know what it actually is.

[N.N.]

There's a reason it's called the law of supply and demand,

not the law of demand.

 

It's an error to say that either group (escorts or clients)

alone is responsible for price levels.

[Guest JT]

What's Up with the Canadian Dollar?

 

>Was in Montreal over New Years weekend and e-mailed Nikko,

>supposedly the BEST ESCORT in Montreal, requesting info. He

>replied that he charged $250 (canadian) per hour.....this

>equated to over $400 US dollars. I said "thanks but no

>thanks".

 

Do you mean $ 250 (US) per hour which is equivalent to about $ 400 Canadian dollars? I'd love to live in a world where what you said were true. Unfortunately reality sucks...BIG TIME!

 

 

A Canadian or 0.625 American,

JT

[Guest Thunderbuns]

I don't see a problem with your overnight rate of $800. It's when one see published rates of $1500, that I am inclined to go Hmmmmmmmmmmm, I think not!

 

Thunderbuns

[Guest Tampa Yankee]

BG,

 

You always bring an abundant supply of common sense to the table.

 

Please inform me if you ever give a short course on ‘The Art of Negotiating’ I'd love to take it, assuming we can negotiate rates. :-) Even if I never had occasion to use it, it sounds like the principles would apply to other aspects of life as well.

 

I’m sure you recall that I’m on record as not being a negotiator, but some of your past posts on this issue have persuaded me to be a little more patient in my declination responses. I keep the lines of communication open should the escort wish to offer an alternate proposal. Some have been forthcoming. My view is that if he is willing to make the offer then he should be happy about the deal and maintain a good attitude, otherwise who knows until it is too late. I’m also on record as having never gone above 200… except for a three-way.

 

One of my points in starting this thread is not that there are $300 escorts but that so many unknown guys have the attitude that they belong in that league… and presumably they are getting some positive feedback in the way of customers. And if this is what we see now what will happen in the economic recovery. I also note that there are still many escorts who keep their feet on the ground, we have heard from two in this thread and several more post here all the time.

 

" Most amusing are the guys who charge eight or more times their hourly rate for spending a night. I guess there must be lots of guys who pay this, but it sure seems like a lot of money just to sleep with someone, especially given the existence of lots of guys who are delighted to receive $800 or $1000 to spend the night."

 

Makes me laugh and wonder too. My rule of thumb is three to five times the hourly rate depending on the hourly rate (three is a bargain and five is tops). My POV is that if having dinner, attending a show, and getting 6-8 hours or more of sleep is such heavy lifting then they are out of shape for the business they are in. Or they have lines of clients waiting to schedule and I didn’t know that I had mistakenly wondered into a line (there isn’t much for which I’ll stand in a line – personal quirk).

 

"TY(getting closer and closer to the sidelines by choice)"

 

Not really, but I am sending more players for the other team to the sidelines.

[Guest Kenny021]

RE: What's Up with the Canadian Dollar?

 

Do you mean $ 250 (US) per hour which is equivalent to about $ 400 Canadian dollars?

YES.....Oh my, I've really got to edit before I post.

[Guest CraigSF39]

>* Rod Hagen's success notwithstanding, is there a glass

>ceiling for guys with only 6 inches? Do big spenders, even

>-- particularly, for my purposes -- big spenders who aren't

>size queens, just naturally feel like they should be getting

>an 8" cock, or at least a 7, with all that cash?

 

you should try brown, lots of guys with tiny cocks make $ by speshalizing in brown acitivites, chunkie, diareah, wiping, etc.

 

think about it this way, your making it any way, why waste it? you can still make $ with a tiny dick if your creative, especialy in SF!

 

ill be your first, send some of those chunks and peenuts over this way, some snikers bar, and i wont care about your tiny dick!!!! MMMMMMM!!!!!

[Traveller]

>He

>replied that he charged $250 (canadian) per hour.....this

>equated to over $400 US dollars.

 

How does this work if the Canadian dollar is worth one-third less than American?

 

Later.

[Bilbo]

3 - 5 times the hourly rate? That, in itself, might be an example of the prices going up. (Which is one reason why I hope to have my real escorting website up this weekend. I haven't checked lately, but I somehow doubt that these rate hikes are effective for print based escorts. Are they?) Anyway, we all know my memory, but it seems to me that the last time (or one of the last times) we talked about this, the consensus was that 2.5 times the hourly rate was a reasonable asking rate for overnight. So, I can see 3, but 5??

(I'm so half-Scots that I'm cheap with your money, as well as my own, ya notice?)

[phage]

>Was in Montreal over New Years weekend and e-mailed Nikko,

>supposedly the BEST ESCORT in Montreal, requesting info. He

>replied that he charged $250 (canadian) per hour.....this

>equated to over $400 US dollars. I said "thanks but no

>thanks". I posted this on a Montreal thread and you

>wouldn't believe the number of clients who said that he was

>well worth it AND MORE, etc. etc. Again, when escorts see

>this, why the hell should they ask less? The bottom line is

>THERE ALWAYS WILL BE SOMEONE WILLING TO PAY THE OUTRAGEOUS

>FEES...I am not one of them

 

I don’t mean to start that tangent again, but Nikko is a beautiful guy with a hot body and in the prime of his manly youth. He is on the high end, but if he’s not worth it, no one is. I realize that is exactly your point. Stick to your guns…don’t pay those prices…but you’re going to miss out on some of the very best.

 

What’s an extra $50 or $100? A medium quality dinner for two?

 

I draw the line at porn performers (note…not “stars”). There has to be something really special about the $200 or more guys and just being in a movie or two doesn’t qualify.

[Guest DCescortBOY]

>>He

>>replied that he charged $250 (canadian) per hour.....this

>>equated to over $400 US dollars.

>

>How does this work if the Canadian dollar is worth one-third

>less than American?

>

>Later.

 

he had it backwards.

CDN$400 equals US$250

 

if someone charged CDN$250, according to jan 7th exchange rate (.628200), the US$ equivalent is $157.05... a bargain by any standard!

 

some people should at least try to be bright if they're going to be pompous!

 

(shoot me... i find myself on traveller's side) :-)

[Guest Tampa Yankee]

Bilbo,

 

I agree. For me the five factor must be tempered by a very good hourly rate multiplier. :-)

 

I recently told one unknown (but hot) escort who quoted me 300 per hour (and justified it by the fact that an overnight client paid him 1000 and only sucked the escort's cock ) that I have to decide how much I'm willing to pay for sixty minutes of fun. Because after all is said and done that is all it is generally. Oh, there have been a few I'll never forget but you don't know that going in and, as in wine, I see no very strong correlation between price and quality. To be clear, I am not claimig a strong inverse correlation either.

 

I also have to decide how much an overnight is worth TO ME. If I were 20 years younger, I'd have much more stamina of all sorts and need less sleep and the overnight might be worth more but that ain't where I'm at these days. And if I were up to that then I wonder if I wouldn't be happier taking one from traveller's page and scheduling two or three different hourlys in one night. Right traveller? :-)

[Boston Guy]

I have done that. However, sad as it may be to admit it, I'm pretty much down to a maximum of two boys per night. Getting old sucks.

 

BG

[Boston Guy]

>hey Boston guy, another great post! I have to pay more

>attention to your posts, cause I like how you express

>yourself..why haven't I noticed that before?

>

>

 

Hey, thanks! That was nice of you. I enjoy reading your posts, too.

 

As far as your rates go, they seem very reasonable to me.

 

BG

[Guest JT]

>he had it backwards.

>CDN$400 equals US$250

>

>if someone charged CDN$250, according to jan 7th exchange

>rate (.628200), the US$ equivalent is $157.05... a bargain

>by any standard!

>

>some people should at least try to be bright if they're

>going to be pompous!

 

How true!

 

Thx for your astute observation almost two hours after the initial post pointing out a mistake has been made and more than 30 minutes after the original poster admitted he made the mistake.

 

JT

[Traveller]

RE: What's Up with the Canadian Dollar?

 

>

>Do you mean $ 250 (US) per hour which is equivalent to about

>$ 400 Canadian dollars?

> YES.....Oh my, I've really got to edit before I post.

 

Sorry Kenny. Sometimes I leave the board up while I'm working. Hadn't seen that you'd corrected it.

 

Later.

[phage]

RE: What's Up with the Canadian Dollar?

 

Wait a damn minute. You mean to tell me you actually work? I had this mental image of an idle rich boy spending his days drinking, drugging and sexing. Now I have to rethink everthing…

[Guest DCescortBOY]

RE: What's Up with the Canadian Dollar?

 

>Wait a damn minute. You mean to tell me you actually

>work? I had this mental image of an idle rich

>boy spending his days drinking, drugging and sexing. Now I

>have to rethink everthing…

 

don't worry, phage.

that's HIS mental image too.