When we moved into our home almost two years ago, we tried to meet as many neighbors as we could. We were so excited to finally live in a subdivision and give our child the childhood that my husband and I had. Soon after the moving trucks pulled away, we heard a knock on our door. I opened the door to find the neighbors who live behind us holding a container full of home-baked cookies. They were so kind to welcome us to the neighborhood with such a special, kind gesture.
Recently, the house right next to ours had a “for sale” sign firmly planted in the front yard. My husband and I were so nervous about the sale of the house. We often wondered what the new neighbors would be like. After some time, the “for sale” disappeared and the moving truck appeared.
When I was on our way home from our daily walk with our son, the new neighbor was outside unpacking some items from his car. I headed over to meet him and get to know him a little bit. Talk about friendly! I couldn’t wait to put together a little care package to kindly welcome him to the neighborhood, much like our neighbors did when we first moved into our home.
10 New Neighbor Gift Ideas
If you’re having or recently had new neighbors move into your neighborhood, here are simple ways to put together a little care package to welcome them to the neighborhood.
1.) Baked Treats
Who doesn’t love special treats? Whether you buy them from the store or bake them yourself, you can put them in a cute basket, attach a note (including your contact information), and deliver the yummy treats to your new neighbors. Keep the treats simple since allergies are so prevalent nowadays. If you bake the cookies from scratch, you can include a recipe card too. Include a dog biscuit if you know they have a dog.
2.) Frozen Cookie Dough
Yes, instead of baking treats, why not freeze ball of cookie dough, place them in a container, and attached baking instructions. That way, your new neighbors can just pop them in the oven whenever they feel like having a tasty treat.
3.) Bouquet of Flowers
Stop by your local florist or grocery store and pick up a nice bouquet of flowers. Perhaps your neighbor doesn’t know where they packed the flower vases. Make it easy on them and buy a bouquet that comes with a vase. Be sure to attach a note that includes a friendly welcome note, along with your contact information.
4.) Houseplant
Houseplants are always nice to have throughout the house. You don’t have to worry about whether or not your new neighbor has a green thumb if you pick one of these houseplants.
5.) Housewarming Gift Basket
Fill a small gift basket with a candle, a welcome letter with your contact information, candy, and a bottle or two of your favorite cleaning products.
6.) Bagels and Coffee Gift Basket
Stop by your neighbor’s house in the morning (not too early!) and drop off a basket filled with bagels from the local bakery, cream cheese, and ground coffee.
7.) Movie Night Gift Basket
Moving is hard work. Your new neighbors might want to relax by watching a movie. Put together a simple movie night basket that includes popcorn, waters/pops, candy, and a friendly note. Instead of a basket, why not use a popcorn container? So cute.
8.) State Gift Basket
What is your state all about? For us Maryland folks, we love our Old Bay Seasoning. For Michigan (where I grew up), we were all about cherries, Better Made Chips, Faygo, fudge … the list goes on and on. Fill a basket full of your state’s favorite foods.
9.) Snacks
Fill a basket full of grab-and-go snacks to help keep your neighbors fueled and energized as they move. Like I said before, moving is hard work. Grab-and-go snacks will be appreciated during the tough work.
10.) Kitchen Gift Basket
Grab a basket and fill it with a small cutting board, a rosemary plant, a pretty container or hand/dish soap, and a small wooden spoon. This basket can be super pretty and very functional.
What’s your favorite gift ideas for new neighbors?
Cadry says
That’s very smart to make sure that allergens are avoided when it comes to gifts. One of our neighbors lost her dog, and we found him and returned him to her. She thanked us with homemade M & M cookies. The only problem? My husband and I are vegan. It was very thoughtful, but we had to pass them off to other friends. A gift card to the local Co-op or movie theatre would be a safer choice that everyone can enjoy.
Corpely.com says
Williams Sonoma Gaby Dalkin’s Salsa Guacamole Starter Gift Set ($30): Instead of making a casserole, how about encouraging the new homeowners to make their first meal together? Providing them with some starter ingredients makes it stress-free.