By OrientalNY
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When Maria first started working as an escort four years ago, she thought the hardest part would be the actual appointments. She was wrong. The hardest part, she discovered, was learning to think of herself as a business. "Nobody teaches you this stuff," she said when we met at a wine bar in the West Village. "You just figure it out as you go, and you make expensive mistakes along the way."
The money in escorting can be staggering, especially in a city like New York where wealthy clients are abundant and willing to pay premium rates. Maria charges eight hundred dollars for an hour, fifteen hundred for two hours, and three thousand for an overnight. On paper, if she saw just three clients a week, she'd be making over three hundred thousand dollars a year. But the reality, as Maria explained while we shared a plate of olives, is far more complicated than simple multiplication. "People see those rates and think we're all rich," she said. "They don't see everything that comes out of it."
First, there are the agency fees. Maria works with an agency that takes forty percent of every booking. They handle the screening, the advertising, the scheduling, and provide a layer of protection between her and clients. In exchange for that safety and convenience, nearly half her income disappears before she ever sees it. Independent escorts keep more of their money, but they also shoulder all the risk and administrative work themselves. Maria tried going independent for six months and found herself spending hours every day answering emails, checking references, and managing her website. "I was making more per appointment," she recalled, "but I was so burnt out that I was taking fewer appointments. In the end, I made about the same."
Then there are the expenses that civilians never think about. Maria spends at least five hundred dollars a month on lingerie alone, because clients expect variety and luxury. Her hair appointments every three weeks cost two hundred and fifty dollars. Manicures, pedicures, waxing, and skincare add another three hundred monthly. She belongs to an upscale gym because she needs to maintain her appearance, and that's another two hundred. Her work wardrobe of cocktail dresses, heels, and designer accessories has cost her thousands over the years. She pays for professional photos annually to keep her agency profile current. She splits the cost of a security service with other escorts, which monitors her appointments and checks in regularly.
The irregular nature of the income makes financial planning nearly impossible. Some weeks Maria sees six clients and makes over ten thousand dollars. Other weeks she might only have two appointments. The holidays are usually slow. Summer can be unpredictable when her regulars are out of town. She's learned to save aggressively during good months to cover the lean ones, but it requires a level of financial discipline that took her years to develop. "My first year, I was making so much money that I just spent it," she admitted. "Designer bags, expensive dinners, trips to Miami. Then I had a slow month and couldn't make rent. That was my wake-up call."
Taxes are another complicated issue that many new escorts don't anticipate. Maria reports her income as consulting fees, keeping meticulous records and working with an accountant who doesn't ask too many questions. She pays quarterly estimated taxes and sets aside thirty percent of everything she makes. Many escorts don't do this, she told me, and then face devastating tax bills or, worse, audits they can't explain. "The IRS doesn't care how you made your money," Maria said. "They just want their cut. And if you can't show where your rent money comes from, you've got a problem."
What surprised me most in talking with Maria was how she's started thinking about the long term. She's thirty-one now and knows she won't be able to do this work forever. She's investing in index funds, maxing out a Roth IRA under her legal income, and has started taking online courses in digital marketing. "I'm trying to build something that will outlast this career," she explained. "Because the truth is, this job has an expiration date. My looks will fade. Clients will want someone younger. Or I'll just get too tired to keep doing it." She paused, swirling the wine in her glass. "Right now, I'm making more money than I ever dreamed of. But I'm also very aware that I'm essentially selling my future for my present. Every year I do this is a year I'm not building a conventional career, not gaining experience I can put on a resume. So yes, I'm making great money now. But what will I have to show for it in ten years? That's the economic calculation that keeps me up at night."