The price range your looking at is pretty realistic for getting something that is decent to start with and can be improved upon. Streets covered a lot of you choices adn there a a bunch more out there to choose from so it all pretty much boils down to what body style you fall in love with.

Once you decide on something, a good place to see what fair market value is is to check on E Bay and see what similar cars are going for. I'm not saying E bay is necessarly a good place to shop for a first time buyer though, people tend to be a little optimistic in there assesment of the condition of the car their trying to sell.

When you do find something that strikes your fancy, take someone who knows what to look for or even better, take the car to a good shop and have the car checked over (even if you have to pay to have it done, it's money well spent).

As streets says, if you narrow down what your looking for the people here can lekley give you some good pointer on what to look for.