I'm signing a lease on an apartment in another city, about three hours away. I've seen the place, but I'm not able to trek out there to sign the lease in person before our rental period begins (May 1).
The landcouple has asked us to mail them the check for the first month's rent and the deposit, and they'll email the lease to us on receipt of our payment.
Frankly, this sounds backward to me. Can they insist on collecting rent before signing the contract? (It really seems like the answer to that question should be no.)
The apartment is in Washington state.