The letter must explain who is gifting the money, where the donor's funds are coming from and the relationship between the donor and the recipient. A gift letter for a mortgage shows your lender that you don't need to repay gift money toward your down payment.A gift letter is a piece of legal, written correspondence explicitly stating that money received isn't expected to be repaid. A short letter like this sample gift letter will cover all of the requirements your lender needs. When you use gift funds, you have to provide a gift letter that proves the funds are not a loan to be repaid. A gift letter for a mortgage verifies the source of a homebuyer's gifted down payment funds. A gift letter is a note from a donor to your lender regarding cash funds for your mortgage down payment. A gift letter is a written statement confirming that the funds given to a borrower are indeed a gift and not expected to be repaid. It states how much you're getting and from whom. Gift money for USDA loans can come from any donor who doesn't have an interest in the transaction.