I absolutely completely agree with buying your breeder first. I have one from a shelter, two rescues & one from a breeder. I love my shelter pup/rescues more than I ever knew was possible. But there's a huge difference between them & my champion-sired girl. In fact, her price wasn't even a concern of mine. Once I found my breeder, I knew that I wanted a puppy from her no matter what the cost. I probably paid a little higher than average. However, I'm in the Northeast & everything is more expensive here. Some other reasons she was probably on the higher end of the price scale could have been the fact that she stayed with her breeder for a full 16 weeks, she is spayed, she's had her 1st year of shots, she's microchipped, she has a one year congenital health guarantee & she was raised with an incredible amount of love. Plus, my breeder has to put up with emails from me bragging about how smart, wonderful & perfect my baby is for the next 15 years
My next puppy will come from this same breeder. I wouldn't even consider looking for another. Honestly, I think that once you build a good relationship with a reputable breeder you share a breeding philosophy with, you'll find that you won't be so concerned with "price".
I wish you the best of luck with your search!! What an exciting time for you!