For more versatility (let's say you wanna try different genres like Blues, Rock and Metal to see what you love playing the most), you can get an affordable Squier Strat in your budget, and upgrade one of the stock single-coil pickups to a single-coil-sized humbucker. That way, you retain the rest of the single-coils for that bright sound, while also having a humbucking pickup at your disposal for a heavier/full sound required by rock/metal.

All the best!