Having an internet presence is more important than ever. After the dot-com boom a few years earlier things have settled down; and now more people are using the web more often to look up more information. If you shop around for web design work, you'll probably see some pretty big price tags.
Please contact me and let me know what you'd like on your site -- bulletin boards, Flash, photo galleries, or more -- and I will give you a custom quote. Chances are it will be less than $300 including domain, hosting, and site design, and maintenance. After that, it's only $75 per year for domain renewal, hosting renewal, and maintenance (up to 3 hours of professional maintenance per month).
Compare rates and shop around. Many places charge $500+ for just the site. That means that you'll have to pay for hosting and maintenance seperately, and that adds up.