Not into LMB fishing currently - I'd probably receive multiple face punches for the amount of gear I have (I'm a bit of a gear junkie/nerd is all I'll say - I like comparing/contrasting different reels and rods).
Fishing overall is good for mental health and you are able to provide food on the table if you so choose to (although maybe not so much for LMB lol). That said, yes, I believe there are certainly more ways you can make it more frugal. At the same time, you commonly get what you pay for. Better gear A) generally lasts longer and B) retains its value (though this is *not* an investment if you buy quality gear and resell later you can recoup a majority of your cost IMHO) and C) affords an overall better fishing experience. Most liken quality gear to the difference between driving a Mercedes S-Class to a Toyota Corolla...ultimately you accomplish the same thing but certain things just work and feel better with nicer reels/rods. That said, "quality" is also somewhat subjective. I have a $100 Shimano Nasci that is probably the smoothest spinning reel I've operated so far. I know that the Stradic CI4+ (don't have this) is just as if not smoother but is closer to $200 retail. I also have a Daiwa Fuego that was $70, and a couple cheaper reels in the $30-40 range (Kastking Sharky III and Mitchell 308x). There's a definite difference in how all these reels feel when operating them. So at that point it becomes a preference thing. But comparing the Nasci to another similarly priced reel that I have, the Penn Battle II, I lean towards the Nasci because it has slightly better sealing (this is important for saltwater use especially) and just feels much better retrieving (the ramp-up on the drag is a little tricky though). I've been using both reels for freshwater/trout fishing only and both are great but at the same price point the Nasci takes it home in my book. Others may agree or disagree. One of my fishing buddies is a *diehard* Kastking fan - I think some of their stuff is decent but some of it sucks. He swears by every single piece of gear he has purchased from them. So much so that he was defiant towards buying Shimano or Daiwa for a long time... then he caved in and bought a Daiwa Lexa and loves it. And recently picked up a Shimano Sienna which he also loves (I really won't be suprised, if over time, I see him with more Shimano and Daiwa gear). Until then he stubbornly insists on buying the cheapest gear possible (this makes sense because he was into supply chain/purchasing for a while... and he's the guy who loves going to swap meets and garage sales and haggling folks on top of it - I joke with myself that this is the guy on CL who offers you 10% of your asking price and who I'd *never* want to sell anything to lol). That said, the guy is a fish-catching machine. So the tools really aren't that important - you just want to make sure that whatever you buy doesn't suck and will fall apart on you after a couple uses (check reviews, inspect or test closely yourself before purchasing if you can, etc)
Anyway, for a starter pair I'd recommend something like an Ugly Stik GX2/Shimano Sienna combo - at the most this combo should cost someone $60-70 but if you shop around and or buy use you can probably find it for $40-50 and even less! FB Marketplace, Craigslist, Ebay and Amazon Warehouse are all good places to check for potential deals that can be had. If you want to go even cheaper, you can wait it out for the Dicks deals that come around for the Daiwa Samurai combos - normally a combo is $30 but IIRC they'll sometimes have deals where you can get two combos for $30 or less. These will get you a very basic but decent combo for a budget starter. Tackle can be relatively cheap too - often you can find what you need at Walmart.
I know you asked specifically about freshwater, but that does play a factor in the type of gear you get. I'm in SoCal so historically I've fished the surf and harbors more than I do freshwater - it pays to get a reel that is *sealed* or at least partially sealed in addition to rinsing your gear down after every session. Saltwater and sand are nasty things that you don't want intruding into any part of your reel. Lately, I've been into trout fishing because this is the time of year for it and where I moved there's a lake (that they've been stocking every week) less than a 5 minute drive away, so I'm a bit spoiled. For a majority of freshwater fishing (bass and trout) you definitely can get away with cheaper gear.
Regarding the tow vehicle and boat, typically, I see these as more overhead (so yes, not really frugal) but I guess it depends on the size of the boat. My friend recently bought a 22' boat and pays recurring maintenance and slip fees on it. We've gone out a number of times and it's fun but I don't know that I'd personally want to own one, even if it's smaller. I realize bass boats are smaller and require less overhead. But there are options with even less overhead such as kayaks and float tubes (which you can attach motors to). I actually have a float tube that I purchased with the intent of float tubing the harbor to fish for spotted/bay bass. No tow vehicle or trailers required for yaks or tubes and much less overhead than most if not all boats. Your range is limited but I guess it depends on where you're fishing too.
Overall like poetdereves, if there are accessible small ponds, city park lakes, or lakes with various shore access locations, I think I'd prefer just to go that route (good exercise too) for a more frugal means of fishing.