As a loan officer, do you give housewarming gifts to your clients at the closing table? While certainly not mandatory, a gift can be a nice way to show you appreciate their business, welcome borrowers to their new home and contribute to a lasting impression that can lead to referrals.

If you’re a loan officer brainstorming housewarming gifts for borrowers, read on for some key considerations and suggestions that can help you stand out.

Service first

To earn any kind of referral, great service throughout the loan process is mandatory. Giving a housewarming gift to your borrowers won’t make up for poor communication or mistakes.

While a gift won’t determine whether your clients refer their friends and family to you, it’s one last opportunity to add to their positive impression of you.

Know your client 

The best gifts are personal. If you build any kind of rapport during the mortgage process, you should know a few of your borrower’s preferences and habits that can help guide your gift choice.

Perhaps the borrower has raved about their new home’s deck because they love to have a beer outside with friends. The gift of a set of pint glasses or a nice cooler could be a gift they’ll actually use for years to come – and they’ll know you truly listened to and connected with them as a person rather than focusing on the transaction.

Knowing your client can also help you avoid gifting them something they can’t or won’t use. If your standard gift is a nice bottle of champagne to toast their new home, you should adjust your gifting plans if a client mentions they don’t drink alcohol. If they’ve joked about their “black thumb,” don’t give them a houseplant. A tone-deaf gift won’t necessarily ruin your chances of earning a referral, but it can give a client the impression you see them as a loan, not a person.

Housewarming gift ideas

A list of housewarming gift ideas for loan officers could be endless – the only limits are your creativity and your budget! Here are a few ideas to get you started:

• Personalized items with their family name
  • Home address stamp
  • Coasters
  • Welcome mat
  • Keychain
• Home-related
  • Small toolkit
  • Kitchen and entertaining essentials (glassware, charcuterie board, etc.)
  • Houseplant (only for those with green thumbs!)
  • Certificate for a cleaning service, locksmith, or other essential new-home chore
• Local
  • Framed painting of the house, historic map or other locally themed art
  • Gift card to a restaurant, hardware store or other local business
  • Gift basket of locally sourced snacks, coffee and home goods

To brand or not to brand?

Some gifts can be easily branded with your company logo, like mugs or pint glasses. When done well, a branded item can serve as an enduring reminder and advertisement for your business – but only if they actually use it! If you do brand your housewarming gifts, make sure the branding is tasteful and the items are of high quality and durable. Don't give disposable junk that will just be thrown in the back of a drawer or thrown away altogether.

Include helpful tips and resources

Owning a home comes with many responsibilities that may be new to first-time homebuyers. Local referrals and homeownership tips are a helpful addition to any housewarming gift. These could include:

• A new homeowner checklist with advice on changing locks, deep cleaning, setting up utilities, how to change your mailing address and more
• Home maintenance tips (use MGIC’s home maintenance checklist from their first-time homebuyer resource library, for example!)
• Referrals to local professionals, like a reliable handyman, plumber, electrician or lawncare company

Create a system

A great housewarming gift can reinforce your human connection with borrowers – no one wants to feel they are just a transaction. But that doesn’t mean you need to start from scratch each time. For efficiency, you may want to create a small set of standard housewarming gifts to choose from that fit a variety of lifestyles, plus a standard package of helpful tips and information.

Finally, tie it all together with a sincere handwritten note. These human touches can help you be more memorable and build relationships that last. 

The opinions and insights expressed in this blog are solely those of its author, Liz Keuler, and do not necessarily represent the views of either Mortgage Guaranty Insurance Corporation or any of its parent, affiliates, or subsidiaries (collectively, “MGIC”). Neither MGIC nor any of its officers, directors, employees or agents makes any representations or warranties of any kind regarding the soundness, reliability, accuracy or completeness of any opinion, insight, recommendation, data, or other information contained in this blog, or its suitability for any intended purpose.