I am in the process of starting my home based business and am overwhelmed with how to start a website, and who I should choose to host it - - Yahoo Small Business solutions, Microsoft, Go Daddy, etc . . . I am on a tight budget, but want it to look professional. I'd also like to have a check out option, where customers can purchase online.

Does anyone have any personal experience with any of the website hosts, or advice?

Thanks!

http://www.LocoDomains.com or http://www.JuicyHosting.com they both are very very good

Use paypal (credit card) for payment. Make sure that you can sent (mass) email's out. Also check if php, perl etc is allowed.

If you need shopping cart look at for a hoster that has this installed. (like OsCommerce).

To let it look professional is all up to you. (Tip: Don't use flash and keep it simple and clean)

Our company has had a great experience with Stargate.com They do a superior job and are currently doing some new web design for my website. They have low prices and work very well with us. Our company is a credit card processing company and we work with stargate to allow you to accept credit cards online at a low rate with our shopping cart and gateway. I love Stargate and would recommend them to anyone. Email me at Sales@firstbankcardprocessing.com and I will give you some more information and numbers to call in regards to your website, because they are one of my affiliates they will help you out and give you a great deal.