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. You can use gifted funds to make a down payment, but your mortgage lender will want to know some details before they allow you to use it.Here's a sample gift letter you can use to prove that the money is truly meant as an outright gift, with no expectation of repayment. The letter should state that the gift is intended to help the borrower make a down payment and that the donor has no expectation of repayment. Yes, your gift letter needs to be notarized. Also, both the donor needs to sign it to make it valid. The purpose of this letter is to document that the money does not need to be repaid as well as the donor's name, contract information, and relationship to you. The purpose of this letter is to document that the money does not need to be repaid as well as the donor's name, contract information, and relationship to you. Use our mortgage gift letter template and write yours. Many forms require signatures from a Notary Public or a DMV representative to be valid.