Does anyone have any tips on minimizing rents/costs?
Back in 2004, when I was living in St. Louis, two guys in a 3 room apartment near the Wash U shuttle line in a neighborhood which was 20-something friendly was $400 a month each. If you were content with the college kid lifestyle you could easily do it on $800 ~ $1,000 a month total.
Another option is doing the startup part time while working, which tends to make the difference between $800 and $1,200 pretty immaterial.
If you want to reduce your expenses, get a room-mate. (Then it will be $400 a month)