cheap as cheaps would be to go for ones like the Kona’s P2’s ? ( cant remember the name. )
Up from that, i think Bontrager do a rigid alu fork which i thought looked good for the money new.
Up from that, then its carbon jobbies. I have the Pace rc31’s and love em as the commuter setup. They come up often enough on the ads of most sites these days. Folks also seem fussy about them too. I tried to sell my Titanium from for about £80 a couple of weeks ago and had little interest. So i kept em , and have been building this as the commuter instead.
They do flex and bit after a while, but for the road stuff, thats fine … it does take the sting out of the ride a great deal.
Personally, i’d be looking for the carbon ones it’d be worth saving up the money to get a second hand set over the cost of a new Kona P2 …. personally that is.