Pick a sensible housewarming gift budget.
Housewarming etiquette scales with relationship and with local prices: the same gesture costs very different amounts in an expensive city and a cheap town, which is what the cost-of-living index adjusts for. A group gift divides the value among contributors, and if you are also bringing food or drink a quarter of the gift value is a realistic allowance for it.
Housewarming gift budget
Gift value = relationship base x local index/100; your spend = gift value / contributors + food allowance (25% of gift value if bringing food)
For a friend, roughly the cost of a nice bottle plus a household item — the mid-range figure here. Neighbours and colleagues sit lower, family higher.
Because a gift is read relative to local prices. The same amount that looks generous in a low-cost area can look token in an expensive city.
Yes — consumables and plants are traditional housewarming gifts. Use the food allowance line as the budget for them.