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 short letter like this sample gift letter will cover all of the requirements your lender needs.Only certain gifts can be used for your down payment. Gifts can only come from family members or friends who have a close relationship with you. 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. A gift letter for a mortgage is proof to the lender that money you've been given for your home purchase is a gift, not a loan to be repaid. A gift letter for a mortgage shows your lender that you don't need to repay gift money toward your down payment. 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. Mortgage Gift letter is what the donor of the gift writes to the lender stating that he has offered a gift of money to the home buyer. The lender will need a "gift letter" from the donor to make sure your down payment help has no strings attached.