A reader gearing up for a new rental has been asked by the landlord to pay a deposit before any tenancy agreement exists, and has brought the problem to the Property Clinic. The column treats the timing as a legitimate worry, since money changing hands this early is far from standard practice. Normally a deposit is tied to a signed agreement, which spells out what it covers and how it comes back. Handing cash over before that paperwork is settled leaves a tenant exposed if the deal never happens. There would be no agreed terms, no inventory and little leverage if the landlord then stalls or vanishes. The sensible course is to ask why the deposit is needed now, get any answer in writing, and push for the agreement first. A landlord who insists on money before terms is not necessarily acting in bad faith, but the request deserves scrutiny before anything is paid.