I last had a date with an escort a dozen years ago, then left the hobby to concentrate on a new relationship. I've tipped my toe in the water again, so far it's not been a good experience; Eros, once the Gold Standard way to meet the best providers, is now riddled with scams. Looking for a place in the Philadelphia area that really delivers GFE.  Everyone seems much more concerned about LE than in 2013.

Prices, for one. Many women asking for RW info and deposits too. Providers now have the upper hand as there are alternate ways to make money in the lifestyle without actually having to meet people in person.
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You say you are looking for a "place" in Philly but did you mean a provider? Lastly, I don't get the sense that people are more concerned about LE than 10+ years ago. It's never really an issue if women screen well and guys do their research.  
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Welcome back!

Prices are naturally higher.

the Sugar Baby phenomenon has happened .. the stigma of getting paid to pay has greatly reduced,  so a lot of , lets call them civilians , women with regular jobs and lives  are posting on Sugar Baby sites.  for them they want to have fun, more of a GFE typically and now realize they don't have to give it away.      

Welcome back!  

Well, yes, expected that.

Cut the adds - go back to freestyling - screen the mark at the bar -so no expense for background check or your photos and use his room .

Nothing is free. It’s always have that option. I love getting paid in full! I don’t leave the house without a deposit. 💸  

I supplement my income by working remotely. OF + offering virtual dates, video chat, sexting, etc. it’s a major game changer. 🫶🏽

Are huge now. I disagree with a post above,  I think they are absolutely UNnecessary. Stay clear of them.

Rates are exponentially higher, especially over the last 3-4 years with Covid, Sesta/Fosta, twitter, inflation, etc all combining to have a huge effect to the upside on cost.

Definitely agree. I see top tier ladies all the time without them.

Life  changes  rapidly  as  the  newest  technology  presents,  thus  
"Virtual  Online"  Dates  are  amidst  my  repertoire  as  is  "FMTY"
and  "In-Person"  Rendezvous.

1. 8+ on performance for me on TER.  
2. No deposits, at least for me.
3. Have a $ cut off, so go with your budget.  
4. Mostly positive reviews. I understand a lady might have a day off and that will make me hesitate to see her.  
5.  Be professional in your communications (provide verifiable info, grammatically well written). Re-read your message for any errors (seriously!). If provider needs more info, share it if you can or move on and thank them for their time.
6. See ladies you have seen before, if they are still active and remind them of any memorable events during your dates.

Hi Tom and welcome back!

I too left the hobby about 8 years ago, to also concentrate on a relationship.  Marriage is hard, and may not work out (again). At some point, I signed out, and got back in, sort of. I am doing the SB-SD thing. The first one, much younger than me, wanted a lot and I was able to talk her down, the second one just wanted to fuck and I only paid for the room and drinks at the bar. I find the one's who want PPM, are a lot less than the ads I see on Eros and Tryst. I love pussy, but would never pay 1k, and I can afford it, just won't do it. Try the Sb-SD thing, you may like it.

What did twitter have to do with it?

Yes this has become the norm to fill the time! Very easy to make money on things like onlyfans. Where are you advertising your video chats and sexting options?

Just be careful of those who want it for “free” . Often times that comes with a side of blackmail after a while or a very unhappy spouse who finds out. If there is no skin in the game those ladies have nothing to lose. It’s usually just a hustle ploy. Sometimes even the girls man is in on it to eventually drug you and steal from you. The “dating” just gets you comfortable enough to let her get close to you. I had a lady approach me about doing this on a team basis where the ladies worked in pairs unknowingly to the guy. Not my sort of thing so I distanced myself. Just be careful free isn’t always free and comes at a different price. And in some cases you could be left holding the bag in the form of fraud. Not exactly sure how it works but it’s elaborate.

Twitter was huge with regards to raising rates. When TER shut down due to S/F, one of the several sites they flocked to was Twitter. Many women were shocked that leaving "review culture" actually increased their book. When you have more date requests than usual, it's easier to raise rates, right?  
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It also allowed women to communicate in massive numbers and tell each other they were raising rates. That gives other women the confidence to follow suit. So a domino effect started and caused by, in large part, Twitter.  
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Twitter also gives an in depth look into personality. Most men, but especially deep pocketed men, love that extra info and gave them more confidence that they would be a good match with the provider before they plunk down thousands for an overnighter or weekend escape.

First, OF and the Master Baiters, have taken many of the best fish out of the sea.
Wish they would dial that back.
No reviews!!  So many SW are surviving well without reviews.  Shame but you pays your money you takes your chances.  Reviews have always had to be filtered for the wheat and the chaff.
Asking for a current photo holding ID. 🤦🏻‍♂️. Deposits. Too much info exchanged.
Less College girls.  Seriously.  Less girls are truly independent.
Seems to be way more diversity in ethnicity and culture.
One thing that hasn’t changed is you usually get what you pay for.
Nothing has ever changed with YMMV.

I too have been away for about 10 years and am now fully committed to TER and The Lifestyle. The biggest change I see is that there were a few providers that would provide Ultra PSE, BBFS back then and I posted looking for that option and was amazed at the response. I have The List and so far it has been fantastic. I get tested regularly, never have had an STD, show my lab results, pay for the high end escorts, do my research, and I have posted on Value versus Price. If you want Excellence Experiences you have to be willing to pay for them.  
I am happy to be back and love the experience and writing reviews. Check mine out if you want a smile.

Rates are much higher and more women want deposits.  Since I don’t give deposits, I am much less active and focus on sugar babies these days.  

Lots of provider ads that seem to be only about driving business to their onlyfans account or some other pay site. Seems especially true on tryst right now.  

prices are up about 2 to 3x.

Agree 100%!!! If tryst wants to allow gals who only have OF, they should be a separate category for them. There obviously are gals that do OF+ escort, but if the only want to contact her is through OF not cool.

If a girl says they only way to contact her is through OF, that is a dead giveaway that the ad is an OF traffic scam. OF specifically prohibits using the site to discuss the types of activities we enjoy. Nobody in their right mind would use that site to arrange an appointment because it means their account will get shut down and they will get locked out of their money. Not to mention, many of those accounts are run by 3rd parties so you're probably not talking to the woman in question. There might be a work around with "collabs" but that requires the potential client to have an account registered for content production. Tryst allows a lot of this garbage on their site and it is not great for providers. That being said I appreciate OF because it has definitely saved me some $ and disappointment. Photoshop and face-tuning filters can hide a lot but the videos usually tell the truth. Sometimes for as little as $4 I can get a sneak peak behind the veil!