I am about 18 months into learning guitar so by no means am I an expert but I went through the same problem you are ...what to buy.

I did a lot of research and settled on an Ibanez GAX70 (SG knock-off). I paid $183. It has a nice neck and good sound for the money.

I would not worry about this first guitar lasting 5 years. After playing a while (2 years) you will have a better feel for what you need in a guitar (tremelo, single/humbucker coils, dark vs bright sound) and what sound you are looking for out of the guitar.

I also purchased a Roland Cube-15 amp for $99 and it is also a great started amp. Same goes for the amp, after playing for a while you will better know what you want out of an amp.

Hope this helps...

Curt