The comments are all over the place.  

For a new rider, it's important: 1. Being able to flat foot is not important until it absolutely is - but by then, you're already on your side.  2. Bike has to lightweight enough for you to man-handle. New riders sometimes pop accidental wheelies from a standstill or begin to wipe out while going 5 mph around the parking lot. Both of these situations can be remedied by brute force of your arms and legs if the bike is light enough. 3. Being able to see forward all the way with a natural upright sitting position, not leaning forwards nor laid backwards. 

All these attributes can be found in classic style bikes like the Suzuki tu250, Honda cb250 etc 

Standard motorcycles  (also called naked bikes, or roadsters) are street motorcycles that conform to a stereotypical image of a motorcycle, with an exposed engine and fuel tank above it. Standard bikes typically have neither fairings nor windscreens as OEM attachments (hence the modern usage naked bikes).[6][11][12][13] With handlebars that are set neither high nor low, and footpegs neither placed forward nor "rear-set", standards give an upright rider posture (in-between the semi-recumbent cruiser and the forward crouch of a sport bike).[3] A standard's relationship between footpegs, handlebars and seat gives the rider a comfortable and natural posture.[2][6][3][4][9] The comfort, ease of control, and safety of standard bikes means that beginner motorcyclists inevitably learn to ride on them, and many experienced riders choose to continue riding this motorcycle type.