Some context: i've never needed a car, because i've mostly lived in cities where you can get around using transit.
I've recently moved to a rural area where unless you have a car, you're shit outta luck on the weekends, because there are either no buses or one bus a day to move around. I can make it decently far riding a bike, but it is not a substitute for a car, unfortunately. I make a modest salary, and while i don't have a lot in the way of savings, i just saw a car the next town over for sale for a very low price (under 1000). I spoke to the owner and they were very clear that the car is pretty old (1999) and needs some work, but that it still works regardless.
Considering that the car would be mostly a convenience, and that gas/insurance shouldn't be too much of a expense... am I dumb for jumping in on this bargain? might I be in over my head in case the car needs a whole bunch of repairs?
Second what everyone else says about only doing this if you want to do maintenance and repairs yourself. Watch some ChrisFix videos. You should have some mechanical inclination (owning a bike is probably enough) and be prepared to slog through old forum threads. You will also need to spend a hundred bucks or two on basic tools (jack, jack stands, socket set is bare minimum). Parts are cheap but you might pay a shop $100 an hour or more for labor if you're not DIYing. Highly HIGHLY recommend finding some car friends to give you advice. On the selection process, on the buying process, on maintenance.
When you buy the car it'll probably have a couple hundred bucks / few hours of stuff that you want to do to be comfortable in it. Backup camera, tie rod ends, deep cleaning interior, whatever. All used cars are like that I think. If you want, bring it to a mechanic for a prepurchase inspection to make sure that there's nothing really fucked up about it, as in safety hazard or "engine will blow up in 300 miles". That'll cost like a hundred bucks.
I bought a shitbox for $2300, raced and drove it for a year, and sold for $2400 when I was ready to move up. I invested a couple workdays of personal time and probably $2-300 of parts; I came out so behind because the market cooled down while I owned the car. Compared to the alternative of buying like a $10-20k nice used car it was still the better option I think.
Also, I recommend getting insurance quotes before you buy. Especially if you are a young man with no driving history it might be more than you think. I had to call like ten places before I found one offering a non-insane price for the minimal legal policy.