Well, I got the frame brand new for around $150 and the chain for $70. It's still a little less than half the price of the frame, though, but I see what you mean lol

I like to thoroughly clean my chain because of all the grit that forms on the teeth of the chainring/cog and I hate knowing that it's grinding the teeth down.

And on top of that I'm just very anal about cleaning stuff; I usually take the chain off from my KTM 450 SMR every week and soak it for 15 minutes in Simple Green or kerosene, rinse off completely with water and hit it with a brush until it's near-perfectly clean, then dry and lube.