Ironically, the SCUTs are nearly as expensive as some tractors that are much larger.
The tractor in the picture is a 2013 Kioti DS4510HS. I bought this as a leftover / demo 6 months ago with a 4 year warrantee for $19.5K with one rear remote and the loader. That's not too far from the 15K mark for a "new", "real" tractor that is big enough to do a fair amount of work. If I were to sell this tractor in the next year or two as a used tractor (not happening!) I would hope to get ~15K. If your budget is ~15K, this is the type of thing you should be looking for. They are out there. You just have to look. People's situations change and they sell perfectly good almost new stuff all the time (it is Tier III).
Alternatively, there is nothing wrong with a simple older tractor. As some mentioned, they may be easier to maintain. For ~15K you can get some really nice used utility tractors in the 40-60hp range. Look at Ebay or tractor house or craigs list. I actually found my first tractor on Ebay and it gave me 8 years of trouble free service.
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