Relative component value to overall SQ.

Not only is this what I would tell a newbie. This is what I would do myself if I have to start over and did not have $30,000 to $50,000 to play with... (I am assuming not a lot of money to spend here. If you DO have $50,000.. then forget what I am writing!)
As far as money goes, a newbie should be spending zero on ’room treatments’. First off you have no idea what to listen for on placing them. And thus IMO you are 90% likely to place them wrong. Or you are placing them where some online guru who also has no idea since they are not there in your room, but they have the chutzpah, and you don’t.
As for cables.. zero on power cords. the stuff came with power cords. use those. Buy bulk power cord for the speaker cable. Folks used it for fifty year before high end. Still works just fine save a bundle. Buy cheap IC, Blue Jeans, Kimber PBJ, etc.. I would tell a newbie to spend a lot on the speakers. used would be best. Not more than 40% to 50%. there IS a danger you buy speaker which are too good, and show the badness of your other cheap stuff! Then on the source. 20% to 30%
Plenty of cheap decent used amplifiers and preamps at a low price.Brand is not so important. just a well known one. All the malarkey about particular brands is malarkey for a newbie. older is fine. particularly find really old used ones where the previous owner replaced the caps in the past few years, usually a good deal. 20% max..

I don't believe in allocating a certain percentage to a component. I agree with chayro, cohesiveness is a really tricky thing to do. Even if you're working with a dealer, because many dealers only push what they carry and what they carry may not work well with your current system. Although it isn't always practical, the best way to decide on components is to listen with your own ears and if possible in your own system.

Some have replied in a fairly straightforward fashion. Thank you. Others have not. That's okay too. But I think it is kind of odd how some folks seem to be trying really hard to make this harder than it really is. I don’t really understand why.

It is really pretty simple. Someone comes over and listens to your system. They love it and want to pursue high end audio. They have a budget of ’x’ amount of dollars and ask you how to start with those dollars.

When they have followed your advice and spent those dollars then they will have spent a certain percentage on each component. Everyone who starts has to allocate a certain percentage of their budget on components. All I asked was how, as a general guideline, you would advise a new audiophile to spend those dollars.

From my experience most people don't go out in purchase an entire system. We assemble a system over time and gradually try to upgrade components. Based on your question I would tell someone 35-50% should be allocated to speakers. How much money one has to spend would be a factor in how the rest of the budget is allocated.