I see signing bonuses often issued when a deal is about to potentially sour and the candidate has some indicator that a short-term one-time gain would suffice i

I see signing bonuses often issued when a deal is about to potentially sour and the candidate has some indicator that a short-term one-time gain would suffice instead of a raise in salary. Could be a low-cost relo, the loss of a coming bonus to be paid, a claimed raise the candidate would have coming, etc. Still not as common as in 1999-2000 (when they were almost a given) or the first recovery (when they were about half as common as 99), but making a comeback.