I just did a quick check on E-Bay and found 18" Juki for $8995, 16" Handi-Quilter for $5500, 18" Inspira for $6999, 18" Innova for $7995. So if you want a long arm and don't want to quilt for others, shop around for the best price. Knowing that there are long arms for less than $10,000 is giving me hope of one day owning one!
Also, the idea of "renting" time on it for others to use is a good idea to help defray the cost. I'll keep that in mind if I ever get one.
The quilting process is the part of this that I enjoy the most. I mostly do meander as I haven't perfected any particular designs yet. I do my LA quilting on a domestic machine so my area is limited to approx. 4"-5". Lots of rolling goes on when I put a quilt on my frame!!!