Starting out or working in the sex industry can be daunting in terms of the financial aspects. Money is coming in, sometimes more than you\u2019ve ever made or even seen before. It can be a bit overwhelming to plan and handle your money. I am not at all a tax professional, financial planner, or really anything but a whore with some experience. This is just advice from me to you, not intended to substitute for professional (well, that kind) advice. It was also not intended to help you avoid the system. Pay your taxes!<\/p>\n
First and foremost, you need to plan your\u00a0budget<\/strong>. How much money do you need to pay rent, utilities, credit card payments, loans, car payments, food bills, and so on?\u00a0How much money do you need each week or month in order to cover the necessities?<\/em>\u00a0Figure this out first. Everything else after this amount is disposable income.<\/p>\n Based on your budget, some market research, and the guidance of other sex workers,\u00a0calculate your rate<\/strong>. I\u2019m not an expert on this. There are others who can help you, like the book\u00a0The<\/em>\u00a0Internet Escort\u2019s Handbook<\/em>\u00a0by Amanda Brooks. Similar principles apply, no matter what type of sex work you do.<\/p>\n Set up a\u00a0book-keeping system<\/strong>. Having no way to track how much money is coming in and going out will end up hurting you. You\u2019ll have no way to know what you\u2019re averaging and how much you\u2019re spending. This can be as simple as a writing down everything you make in a notebook or as complex as a color-coded spreadsheet or financial software. A good, basic system is the date, the number of or type of appointment or job, and the amount made.<\/p>\n Figure out how to\u00a0handle your cash<\/strong>. If you are working for a club, dungeon, or company that issues you a paycheck instead of you dealing with cash, skip this.<\/p>\n Decide\u00a0what you want to do with your cash<\/strong>. Keep in mind that anything you deposit in a bank account, pay bills with, or buy large items with leaves a paper trail. If you want to\u00a0keep your cash handy<\/strong>, one thing you should invest in is a good fire-proof safe. Keeping a lot of cash on hand is risky as a sex worker. If others find out, you can be at risk of robbery. A safe can help. Don\u2019t hide cash in obvious places, like your mattress, the freezer, your toilet tank, and so on. If you\u2019ve seen it in a movie, other people have, too. Consider having a dummy safe. This is a safe you hide in a more obvious place (under your bed, for example) and keep a small amount of cash in. Then, get a good, sturdy, floor-bolted safe or wall safe to keep more in. If a thief breaks in, the thief will quickly discover your dummy safe and leave your main safe alone.<\/p>\n Depositing cash is a good idea. Consider either a\u00a0safety deposit box<\/strong>\u00a0or a\u00a0bank account.<\/strong>\u00a0It\u2019s a good idea to have three bank accounts: a personal checking, a savings, and a \u201cbusiness\u201d checking. This can just be a personal account you filter all of your money through before it goes into your personal account. Keeping your money separate can demonstrate that you are organized in your business book-keeping.<\/p>\n Now that you have a budget and are handling your money, start some basic\u00a0financial planning<\/strong>. What are your long term goals? Are you doing sex work to pay for something, pay off something? A really good rule of thumb is to have\u00a0three months\u2019 of expenses in savings<\/strong>. That way, if you want to take a break, you get fired, transition, the market turns around, you are hurt and can\u2019t work, you\u2019ll have a cushion. You\u2019ll also have money in case of an emergency, like a car breaking down or a medical bill.<\/p>\n If you can afford it, consider\u00a0basic health insurance<\/strong>, catastrophic only. If you are young and have no major health problems, you can usually get this cheaply. It will have a high deductable (sometimes $5,000 to $10,000), so it\u2019s not for your annual exam or going into the doctor when you have a cold. It\u2019s just in case you have a major event happen. If you get hit by a car or something equally terrible, the medical bills can wipe you out. Having insurance can protect you.<\/p>\n