So sorry to hear about the fire and your loss. A friend of a friend bought one a couple of weeks ago. She upgraded from the MC11000 and loves it. When I saw it, I thought *WOW*, and wouldn't that be an awesome machine to own some day, but, I would never be able to justify that expense as I would probably only use it for quilt labels. She says it has more bells and whistles than the MC11000, and is user friendly. Unfortunately, the extras you buy for this machine are quite expensive. She loves the added throat space and the size of the hoops. So, in my limited opinion...Go For It.