Welcome to the forum. You are right, Kato is a bit expensive. The truth is DCC using flex track is veru easy until you get to really complicated stuff and then it is not too bad. Flex track, most of the turnout brands and caboose turnout throws don't cost much, work well and can give you the experience to learn what you need to learn. You will need to learn how to solder sooner or later.
It is DCC friendly
Kato Unitrack
Advantages: Prototypical roadbed height. DCC Friendly Roadbed is kind of precolored so you don't need to add balast.
Disadvantages: Limited selection of track pieces. Expensive. Hard to find.
Bachmann E-Z-Track
Advantages: Greatest variety of track pieces. DCC friendly. Turnouts available with built in decoders
Disadvantages: roadbed not colored, and not protypical height
Lifelike/Walthers Power-Loc
Advantages: DCC friendly. No rail joiners to worry about. Hard to shake loose because track pieces "lock" together. Can be joined to Bachmann/and Kato with conversion piece.
Disadvantages: Smallest selection of track variety. Non prototypical roadbed height/color. Harder to find.
Don - Specializing in layout DC->DCC conversions
Modeling C&O transition era and steel industries There's Nothing Like Big Steam!
I am buildging my first h.o. layout, i don't know much on how to wire the track,switches,exc,ect,but i was reading threw the walter cataloge and came across kato unitrack a bit expensive but you can hook it up to digitrax zephyr to become dcc with minimal wiring ,does anyone out here familiar with this track.