start with a small zone, too. you can pretty much zone the whole place (low/med) with the cash you have. i can turn a profit in 2 years, police, fire, hospital, schools and all.
however, my city doesn't seem to be growing beyond 5000.
oh yea, the reason i suggest a small zone is that you won't have to worry so much about expanding all the time - there's a built-in limit. it's a good start, that's all. then when you build your next city, build it next door, and connect the two and start neighbor deals.