I got the nashbar flat bar disc. They are on sale for $299 right now and are the perfect setup if you don't already know what you like. Then you can customize it with racks, panniers, fenders, etc. there are mounting points for all of the above and people have gone cross country on it, so it's reliable for the price. You'd be pretty far under your $1,000 price point even after adding all the customization you'd want. I often ride mine 36 miles round trip per day and have never been lacking in anything so far. Keep any bike tuned these days and they will last forever. It's really all preference and price.