. . . Which I suppose is the real question . . .
Do you mean "Beginner" as in launch trainer -- enough durability to get the rhythm down with enough airtime to make the effort worthwhile (I can fly it back to my hand instead of going and fetching it every launch), despite the fact you'll never get the altitude or sink rate to effectively soar . . .
Or do you mean "Beginner" as in first competition? You don't need a snipe to compete . . . win, maybe, but compete, not at all.
Yeah +$500 is a lot to drop on an airframe when you've never flown one before, but after going through the effort of semi-scratch building, I can see why it's priced that way. No single step was "hard" . . . but every step was time consuming, meticulously detailed and if you're not careful, potentially very expensive (not hard to do it right, but not hard to do it wrong either . . . and if wrong, you get to start that component over with fresh material you may not have
).
If you're past the rhythm ( I sorta agree with Josh . . . maybe not an afternoon, but it doesn't take long to get it down), then you're past what the folded foamboard wing with foamboard tail-feathers will get you. You then need to move to a re-enforced molded/milled/wire-cut wing to get the airfoil you need on a strong enough wing to take the punishment. You also need a fuse streamlined to not hamper your launch. and a tail that won't shatter under the force but thin enough to not drag you down.
As Josh mentioned, you can get there for much less, or take shortcuts and do it for more, or skip the build process altogether and have one for a LOT more. Your level of effort determines the cost.