Looking for Blue Tongue and Supplies on a budget

[Bees]

I've been looking into getting a Blue Tongue Skink for a few weeks now. They seem like the perfect pet for me, but they're relatively expensive. I have a budget of about $400 USD for everything, but I'm having trouble even finding a skink for less than that. I also have to cover the cost of the enclosure, which I'm usually finding to be 200-300. I've seen people getting smaller enclosures for less, but I want to give my skink adequate space.
I'm not picky when it comes to the reptile itself. I don't care about the color, size, sex, or pattern. All I could say is that I want one that is captive bred, and I'm avoiding Indonesian Blueys because they're commonly wild caught and I've heard they're a little more complicated to take care of.
If anyone could point me in the direction of a good breeder for someone on a budget or somewhere to get an affordable enclosure, that would be appreciated.

[mb606587]

You can buy a smaller enclosure for a baby and budget for a larger permanent enclosure as it grows. I just bought a few 20 gallon longs, which would be suitable for several months at least for $25. You can also build an enclosure for a fraction of the price if you are somewhat handy. There are plenty of videos on YouTube for inspiration

[Y33T]

Try looking for secondhand enclosures on Craigslist or Facebook marketplace, you might find pretty large enclosures for less than $200 or even less than $100.