Thanks for the quick reply guys. I updated my profile but I will answer here as well.
I live in a suburban town in southern NJ , just across the river from Philadelphia. Houses are close and yards are small , my lot is 100 x 50 ft. Its a working class neighborhood so on Saturdays and Sundays the sounds of people working on their houses , wood saws and lawn equipment are frequent. I certainly don't want to bother anyone so I was thinking of buying coke or charcoal to start. I do have a fence.
I have a budget of $500 to start. I have no tools , no anvil and obviously no forge . Im sure that anything I purchase used will hold its value for at least the time it takes me to figure out if I like this (cant imange not) and if I am good at it (thats the REAL question for me) or if I DIY it that the monetary loss would not be significant. I figured forge $150 , anvil $150 an tools + misc items $200 .
I have no welding tools and no fab equipment other than a few smal hand tools , drill, belt sander. Probably nothing of relevance to smithing.
I was an automotive machinist for 10 years. ANything from cutting drums/rotots and flywheels to honing blocks and cutting cranks so I do have some of what I will call "grit time" with metal but not in any fabrication capacity.
Thanks!