I have two SS bikes, both steel, that I use on the trails and occasionally commute on. I don't ride any of my steel bikes in crappy weather, even with them being protected with Wiegle framesaver or T9. Those days I ride one of my aluminum bikes, which both of my mtb commuters are alu.

One thing to look into is the way the frame tensions the chain. My GT Peace uses an EBB and the Salsa Ala Carte has swinging drop outs. I ditched the 2 pinch bolt set up on the GTs EBB and installed a Bushnell EBB which, IMO, is a much better EBB tensioning system. The swinging dropouts on the newer Salsas are pretty much bombproof. Dare I say, one of the best SS tensioning systems out there.

Neither the Peace nor the Ala Carte have fender/rack mounts on the frame so that's another consideration if you intend to ride in adverse weather.

At your budget, I'd shop around for a fleabay/craigslist alu frame and do a cheap conversion. It may not be brand new, but it's satisfying to take bits and pieces and building a bike from the ground up with your own hands.