I agree w/ bowlfullofbliss
You can't get anything productive or commercial going for under $2,000 and 10k is reasonable to start a business esp when your your own boss, Go try and franchise a McDonalds. I myself am tired of being laid-off and at the mercy of someone else or their decisions. I'm taking control of my own future, we all got to eat and make a living. a good caregiver, maxed out can do theoretically 100K + a year, minus overhead. It costs a lot of money to pay for nutes, setup and electricity, as well as having a secure location big enough to do it on top of the time it takes to maintain 72 plants, with monthly transplants and constant feed schedules its a lot of work, and obviously you don't have a clue that it is a full time job.
This is no longer a street corner business but a fast growing industry. By the time u buy buckets, timers, hangers, i hooks, ballasts, reflectors, panda paper or mylar, ventilation fans, ducting, carbon filters, zip ties, nutes and everything else you will easily spend a couple grand.
As an example.....I bought buckets online, and got a deal on them. The buckets and saucers alone cost $200+. Dan Halen the demand is here so why start small. Do you mean 1 light. How do you do a perpetual grow with 1 light and have the supply that's in demand let alone for 5 patients + most likely yourself.
We have all worked hard for a living, and some of us have decided to give this new Michigan opportunity a try and like myself I have spent a mjority of my savings. We risk having our ops busted because of bad search warrants or neighbors who notice somethings going on and the next thing you know all of the equipment is stolen. There is no exploitation. People set the market prices in whats its worth and their willing to pay. You should go smoke a joint or better yet take a Valium because your going to have a heart attack.