When I bought my cheep Dahon for $200 I knew what I was paying for. It's not just getting through college or making a changing investment through time. It was about adapting to my needs.
Plastic breaks levers, one speed fixie style, stock tires and other plastic fittings all had to go. I bought it for the beam weld frame that was far better than the stick welded boardwalk. If I had gone with a quality Brompton or even the Dahon Mu with 10 speed I still would had to have bought a shorter handlebar riser, wheels, tires, saddle, petals, compact crankset, fd litepro brazed-on adapter, handlebar extender and shifters because I hated what came stock.
I would eventually would have upgraded to quality carbon fiber handlebars, bull horn grips, seatpost and for a carbon fork to appeaser my snobbish weight weinery. Some would say I bought a frame and rolled a whole new bike under it. And for the price I have paid, I made off and still haven't broken the bank to what I would have paid for a stock high end. Many parts I got lucky already having, bought in advance or budgeted $100 a month to put away for the tour bike I wanted. I did splurge on the carbon fiber fork, it was basically the same from the 30th anniversary with different decals. Really, everyone changes something from the stock bike you bought unless you are a collector. I couldn't justify buying "recommended" folding bikes. Some things just didn't add up to what I would pay for in a race or road bike. Granted, some of them were lighter weight with a good build quality, but I still hated a lot of the components. I felt I deserved a better price for what I pay for. I educated myself as a consumer. That was my price justification.