For most Realtors, closing gifts are an integral part of doing business. For starters, they’re a way to say thanks for using their services to buy or sell a home—not to mention, turn happy customers into clients for life.
“Giving gifts is my love language,” says Compass agent Suzanne Warner. “It’s a fun way to show your gratitude and excitement for the next season of their lives.”
Compass Realtor Brad Ritz, who partners with wife Kelli, concurs. “We love buying closing gifts for our clients. They’re a great opportunity to say thank you and connect on a non-business and personal level.”
While a bottle of champagne is certainly celebratory, stepping up your gift-giving game can leave a more lasting impression.
“My clientele tends to have it all, so I look for one-of-a-kind pieces that enhance their living experience,” says Warner, who turns to Dallas mainstays Grange Hall, Elements, Phelans, and Stanley Korshak. She also likes the custom gift boxes from Madison Luxe.
Philip Scheinfeld, a Compass Manhattan luxury team leader, opts for anything Hermès. “If it is a higher-end deal, I sometimes go with a Hermès blanket. Those are typically my go-to gifts.”
For Ritz, it’s a special piece from Neiman Marcus or Sur Le Table. “And when all else fails, dinner at Bob’s Chop Shop.”
An experience often is more appreciated than anything tangible. Case in point: Christophe Tedjasukmana, a Citi Habitats agent in Brooklyn, New York, threw his client a housewarming party which included catering, alcohol, and wait staff for more than 80 guests.
“I wanted my client to able to focus on having fun while showing off the home I helped him find,” Tedjasukmana told the New York Times.
Other experience-oriented gifts can play to client’s special interests—think memberships to a local museum or gym, or tickets to a concert or play. Agents can also offer consultations for home services like landscaping or interior design.
For wine lovers, Stressed Vines in Richardson offers private tastings of their premium, hand-crafted varietals from some of the best vineyards in Sonoma and Napa county. Add a case of wine, custom-curated by vintner Robert Varney—complete with in-depth descriptions of the origin, tasting notes, and pairings for each bottle.
Once again, the point here is not to prove your oenophile bona fides, but to show your client that you’re a local expert who is a fixture in the local community, according to Inman, a leading news source for Realtors and brokers.
No. 1 on Inman’s list of smart closing gift ideas is donating to a charity your client is passionate about. “The gift will let your clients know that you listened to their values and that you share those values, as well.”
A shared love of veganism and animal right activism provided the inspiration for NYC Corcoran broker Jannette Patterson. The innovative Realtor signed up to sponsor Rebecca—a Cornish Cross chicken that the Woodstock Farm Sanctuary saved from a meat factory farm—in her client’s name.
“When you’re helping someone through the real estate process you become very close,” Corcoran broker Jannette Patterson told the New York Times.
“For me, a closing gift should symbolize the bond you’ve made with your client.”
You also gotta love Beverly Hills Realtor Christopher Choo, who demonstrated some serious game when his clients closed on a $15 million Los Angeles home. The Coldwell Banker agent gifted his clients an all-expense paid weekend in Las Vegas via a chartered private jet.
According to Choo, his “go-big-or-go-home” closing gift strategy pays off. “My business is 70% repeat clients. Creating memories is important.”
