I have a Babylock Ellisimo. Babylock and Brother are made by the same company. Both are very user friendly. I have heard that feature for feature, the Brother is a little less expensive. But I am not positive about that. Personally, I think the dealer is very important. So I chose the dealer that was close to me and offered great customer service. The Ellisimo, which used to be Babylock's top of the line machine is no longer being made, although my dealer told me they would continue to service them for 25 years. You should be able to get the machine of your choice within or close to your budget. Even though the MSRP is 12K, they discount them, in many cases, dramatically.
I agree with everyone else who encouraged you to get the biggest hoop possible. The biggest one for the Ellisimo is 8 x 12. But I think that the biggest hoop that Babylock and Brother have now is 9.5 x 14. Seems to me that the Phaff might have one even larger than that.
All I can tell you is that you will love whatever machine you get. And yes, the machine cost is just the beginning of the expense. But I do love my embroidery machine ! And my dealer !