It all depends on how the question is asked, IMHO. Some people have no interest in cycling and are just nosy. To them, I'll say that a decent road bike costs between $1000-$3000, but that you can literally spend $10k-$20k if you REALLY want to burn some cash.

On the other hand, if somebody is interested in the sport, or just wanting to get started, I don't mind telling them what I paid for my bike, but also mentioning that if they can part with $1000, they'll be able to get a perfectly good bike that will give them years of service. They can decide to upgrade later...or not.

Some people just lack diplomacy when asking questions.