Considering most people spend more than that on iPhones and Samsung Galaxy's and laptops, I don't think it's too much to consider paying for the peace of mind and convenience without sacrificing security.
Not sure a second is mandatory... But it will help with secure recovery should one be lost/stolen/damaged.
Don't even really need a second for storing alt coins... You just need to uninstall/reinstall the different apps. One seed used for all wallet apps, so wallets and Coins aren't "lost" when doing this. Just inaccessible until you reinstall the appropriate app
I wouldn't really bother with a hardware wallet for only $200 or even $2000 either, since it's easy to keep coins safe if you're careful and multiplying the coins is more lucrative due to the very low risk of losing them. With a stash worth tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands I would definitely get a hardware wallet though. And in the millions probably two and stash one away in a safe.
I don't agree with you. For anything larger than 1000$ I would get hardware wallet. Most people lose their private keys and seeds with desktop wallets and online wallets are definitely not safe.
If someone can't keep $1000 safe they are not cut out for investing and should go back to a dayjob.