NOPE

It's great to be young, good looking and have money to spend on women so you can have sex with them and not have them call you after and NO drama!!!  Live is wonderful!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

First off, yes I am a provider.

I have not noticed that the economy has affected the hobby so much.  What I do notice are the cycles that tend to happen in the hobby.  They tend to correspond to the calendar.   There are very busy times and then there are very slow times.  

For example, the end of the summer/start of the school year tends to be busy for my clients because they take their end of summer vacations with their families and then they are busy getting their kids settled and back into school...plus they get themselves stuck at work catching up on things they've ignored for the past several weeks.   That means it is a slow time for me, but then it picks back up again.

Everything in life is cyclical, it's just a matter of how it all the cycles line up with each other.  

Of course in a perfect world I would just make the same amount of dependable money every month so I wouldn't have to constantly worry whether or not I am making enough and cycles could become a thing of the past, but that is the uncertainty comes with the freedom of this business.  If I wanted a dependable paycheck I could get myself a job in an office of some sort.  However, that comes with a boss who I will inevitably come to find that I am smarter than and then I will want to shoot myself because of the combination of boredom and frustration at the inefficiency of the way the business is run.  Though I'm blessed with brains, I was not cut out to work for anyone.

..yes!

i used to hobby 4 years ago, then i quit for a while.  i'm just getting back in, and boys i can tell you that the median price has dropped on all levels of this hobby.

the girls that were asking for $$$$$$$ 4 years ago are now taking $$$$$$ or even $$$$$.

plus, i can't say that i remember seeing so many ladies offering "specials" to ter members 4 years ago.

so, from a non-expert hobbyist, my answer is definitely yes!  supply and demand, i suppose.

as the government does not seem to keep as detailed statistics on prostitution as it does on home sales, or even illegal drugs. We are pretty much reduced to anecdotal evidence and self-reporting; consequently, this price issue seems to come up every month or so because it is never resolved. What I can say is that in the early 2000s, $300 an hour was golden mean for most high-quality providers. Then in the middle of the decade, at least in the L.A. area, it jumped to $400 and $500 an hour and more, way above the inflation rate. There it has stuck, even now in this really tough L.A. economy.

Once a worker attains a certain pay level, he or she is very reluctant to take a pay cut. Wages are "sticky." And very few "contractors," as providers are, are willing to admit business is slow, as that would undercut their price/negotiation position. However, I have noticed among providers an increase in specials and half-hour offers, as well as cheaper extended hour packages. Again, this is anecdotal and based on my personal observations, but it is nice for a customer.

At the same time, I have noticed is that there has been a very large influx of women into the CraigsList and now Backpage markets. Standard price there is $200 or less. There is always a great danger with these ladies that they are ROBs or stings, but there are quite a few who are legitimate and terrific. Then there is also the K-girl phenomenon, and these ladies have replaced the Russians in the high-value, low-cost provider niche. $250 an hour is standard there. I think this, even more than the economy, is what is keeping a lid on prices, and we can thank the crackdown on prostitution in South Korea for this.

I'm sure some providers will respond to this, saying, "My business hasn't been affected, and I make as much now as I ever have." I'll believe you, even if I have no way of checking up on your figures. I'll even believe you if you say all your friends are doing well. The girls who come on these boards are, for the most part, top-notch; and there are still plenty of rich people--they seem to be the only group that has recovered economically. But this self-reporting is still a very small sample of a very big market. How I wish someone like matheczar (spelled right?) were still around to compile average prices over time and all the other numbers that would end this ongoing controversy.

Anyway, guys, whoever you are with, be sure to treat her well as a human being, and not some meat you bargained over.

I have deemed this year "the hundred dollar baller" year.  The influx in guys (not gents) that have been contacting a multitude of ladies, consistently try to bargain a rate of 200-300, and even try to argue about the hourly rate, has increased tremendously.  Price checking has become out of control, because many gentlemen have become to lazy to view a providers website and do their own research.  

I had a regular, accuse me of using fake photos because he hadn't seen me in over a year, and I am blonde now!  Times are changing... I even had a friend of mine that is advertised at a rate of $300, because that is her NORMAL rate, get turned down left and right the other day simply because her rate is at $300!  "What could you possibly get for $300?"  Was a gentlemen's answer to her... are you kidding?  This girl goes to school, has reviews at that rate... and your questioning her integrity?  What a douche.

I have stories for days... although I don't want to throw anyone under the bus.  The answer is, yes.  The economy has screwed with us all year.  But many providers will not admit to it, simply because gents have a tendency to jump down our throats about subjects like this.  I'm sure someone will reply and tell my I'm whining after this post, or that I shouldn't be discussing such subjects.

Yes, the economy sucks and we all know it.

The economy sucks and we all know it. There's just less money to go around. Clients are cutting back and we're all making adjustments.