I don't have any experience with providers in your area. :-)

I have a few notches from cl girls. Satisfactory AT BEST. You get what you pay for. Don't bother. More headaches than they are worth.

Just consider them at the ENTRY LEVEL. That's the sum of their parts.

Sure CL has tons of ads.  There may actually be some undiscovered gems hidden in there.  In my first hand experience, there are also a lot of bait & switch, fake pictures, under-performers, rush jobs, one & done, runners (who take off with the donation), upsellers.  Oh, yes, CL is the favorite haunts of LE.

What do you ask?  Ask if they have any TER reviews?  Then come here & use the searchg feature to search by name, then phone, then e-mail.  You'll need VIP to read the reviews.  Some girls advertize "TER reviewed" figuring the guys will not actually check.  I did check a few locals & found their reviews...  such that I'd not waste my donation on them.

I know it takes a lot of energy...  but if you are new, you really need to read the Newbie Manual (link at the top of this board).  Then read this board until you can answer every question yourself.  Read some on the other boards to round out your education.  All this is FREE!  Then get VIP & shop from well reviewed TER ladies.  Your best assurance that you'll get the menu & experience you desire.  Believe me, the cost of VIP is far less than even one spoiled date.  

There is a wealth of great information here but it is up to you to learn it.  
skb

There are different definitions of "for real". Will a woman come when you call? Most likely. Will she look like the woman in the picture? Maybe, maybe not. Will I have a good time? Who knows!? Does she have any reviews on TER? if not you are rolling the dice on anything from a rip-off to an LE sting.

Honestly, if you have ask this question you should not be playing on Craig's List.

if you study them for awhile you'll get a sence of what's kosher and what's not. backpage is better since the big cl shakeup a few months ago.....the gem i found on cl now only posts on bp

using the search reviews feature, and inputing your desired critera. Also by paying attention to new reviews and minis on your local page.

I learned to do this when I was new and it made a huge positive difference for me.

I still do this. The only other places I "shop" are TBD, Date-Check, Preferred411 and my four favorite agencies.

I *never* go to CL, BP, CV Eros etc. anymore. Too hard to weed out the good ones....

If you're not in one of the top-20 metro areas, searching TER is a waste of time. You must get comfortable with CL and BP. That means spending time looking through the ads and learning to filter out the ones that are obvious scams - No phone number? Scam. Ad gives a web address that requires a registration fee? Scam.

Also, be aware that the pics used on CL/BP are typically very poor and hide any flaws the girl may have. If you select a girl who took a pic laying face down, don't be surprised if she has a gut! But this is true of girls with expensive websites as well - they will use only their most flattering pics.

In general CL/BP girls will be cheaper than those with elaborate web sites. That does not always mean that CL/BP girls will perform worse than a more expensive girl - after all, TER is full of bad reviews of expensive providers.

I have had plenty of great experiences from CL and BP. Check my most-recent review from Albuquerque - She was found on BP, and she was slim, fine, and her performance was excellent.