Read the "Stickies" at the top of this forum. There's a lot of great info that will give you a little better idea of the scope of "beginning" knife making. Back when Wayne Goddard's "$50 Knife Shop" book was all the rage, it was a pretty common belief that you could make your first knife or two with around a $50 investment. I'm not sure if that's really still the case anymore, and I really don't see that book recommended as much as it used to be, though that may be more a result of our "technological age" and less about the relevance of Mr. Goddard's book.
I can say that there are definitely a LOT more options for "economic" tools now (including belt grinders), than there was when I started getting into knife making about 12 years ago.
I kind of jumped head first into the deep end and built my own belt grinder and heat treat oven before I even made my first knife. I started own with just a few basic hand tools and a Shopsmith. I also had a 12" Delta miter saw that I put an abrasive disc in to cut parts for a 2x72 NWGS (No Weld Grinder Sander). Since then, I've basically been non-stop spending time and money on the next knife or tool.
Everybody starts and finishes different though... At the end of the day, you just have to decide how YOU are gonna do it.