Now that I have the space, I'd like to start woodworking. I love
watching woodworking shows on TV but they make it seem way to easy.
But, having just bought the house, I'm rather strapped for cash. And
honestly I'm not really sure if this is just a passing fad or not. I
don't want to spend a great deal of money on tools which may just wind
up sitting my basement rarely used. So as a beginner who may quickly
loose interest, what are the essential starter tools that I should be
investigating?

Hey, congrats on the new house, and welcome to the club!
I started with fewer tools than that a few years ago, and now I'm
totally hooked. My recommendation would be to pick out some basic
projects, and to buy tools you absolutely need for each project. I
always recommend the book that got me started:
"The Complete Book of Woodworking: Detailed Plans for More Than 40
Fabulous Projects"
http://www.amazon.com/Complete-Book-...5528486&sr=8-2
This book has a good background of wood, tools, and techniques, and
then gives basic plans for some fairly straightforward projects. I
started with a step stool, which I made with just a circular saw,
jigsaw, and drill. I borrowed a friend's router, but that isn't even
necessary if you follow the plan as written. I still use the stool
frequently as a "shoe-putting-on seat", and my wife likes it to reach
stuff on top of the fridge.
In contrast to most opinions here, I don't think a tablesaw is
absolutely necessary. If you have space and cash, by all means go for
it, but I'd suggest a router and router table might be a better "first
major tool" purchase. (Totally depends on what you want to make,
though - again, I'd recommend starting with a project and picking out
tools accordingly, rather than starting with a bunch of tools, as fun
as that sounds.) Anyway, shop space is very tight for me, so I went
with a bandsaw, router table, and circ saw guides instead of a TS for
now. I've also enjoyed discovering hand tools - you can do an awful
lot with a Japanese Ryoba (2-sided) saw, a well-tuned block plane, and
a few chisels.
Keep in mind when thinking about your tool budget that lumber can be
expensive, and don't forget consumables like glue, sandpaper, finish,
screws, hardware, drill bits, router bits, saw blades, etc. etc. etc.
Most of all, have fun woodworking! See what you can build with the
tools you have, look at your local library or used bookstores for
woodworking books, search the archives here, see if there are any
local clubs or classes, and learn whatever you can!
Enjoy,
Andy