Ball pythons require very little work for a pet. Even among snakes, they are among the easiest to care for (some colubrids obviously topping them). The most important thing is to have a good setup; even someone like me who knows absolutely nothing about tools or building stuff can drill a few holes into a rubbermaid or sterilite. Aside from that, some substrate (just pick up a bag at a pet or home & garden store and dump some in), setup two hides (grab two clay pot saucers and take 1 whack to each with a hammer and you're set), a human heat pad (that you can find a local drug store), a water bowl (I just use the plastic casing from blank CD spindles), and a thermometer and you're set. Doesn't get much cheaper and easier than that.

You feed once a week or so when they're young, every two weeks or so when they're older (and not at all in the winter if you want), and clean their cages once a month (with a little spot cleaning here and there of course). I find myself spending way more time and effort on my feeder rat colony than my actual ball pythons.