Welcome Chris. I am a relative newbie so I won't offer too much advice although straight up I can tell you a more descriptive title for your post will get more responses
If you are not doing astrophotography then it seems a dobsonian is the preferred choice as I have ended up with.
Try having a look at Andrews Communication as one choice for your dollars:
Guan Sheng GS-880
10" ASDX, 250mm x 1250mm, NEW Adjustable Super Deluxe (ASDX) heavy-duty 10" Dob!
$649.00 AUD
And definitely read the
articles about scope choices in the newbie section.
Cheers
Dave