Great guitarists can make a knackered $10 guitar sound sublime whereas I could play a custom shop Gibson and make people wanna kill themselves :D
If you're just starting to (re)learn the guitar then it makes perfect sense to buy a cheaper one (epiphone, squire, yamaha etc all do great entry level axes). That way you can always upgrade when you want to, you will know what you want in a guitar and can make a more informed choice. Also if you find out the guitar isn't for you, well you haven't wasted too much cash on it!!
Good luck
head_creeps