If person given POA has to sign the contract

Perfectly normal. Vest the power in your attorney, assuming you trust him, and either hand him an undated check for the deposit, or make sure he gets wire instructions so you can transfer the funds while you're away.

Thanks! Do contracts tend to be fairly standard? Is there anything major I should look out for?

Be advised that many NY attorneys will want to call you some time during the closing.

One reason is, the POA is meaningless if the person is dead. They might also want to make sure you didn't have a last minute change of heart.

So if possible plan to be at a phone at closing time.

The contracts are standard, but the riders are usually massaged by the attorneys. Some attorneys take pride in certain riders that they feel protect their clients.

However, since you don't even know how POAs work, you surely do not know enough to scrutinize your contract beyond merely reading it---which you ought to sit down and do. We hope your attorney is a real estate specialist and did a good job.