Having trained in both Cessna 150s and PA-38s (did my first solo in one), I agree with much of what has been said above. However, that was over 25 years ago and I would not dream of buying one now. Unless you really need to fly at night or in cloud,for your budget, you could buy a really nice permit two seater. As long as you are prepared to do some basic maintenance, the running/standing costs would be much lower and it would probably be much more interesting to fly.