Well, I think we'd be remiss in pointing out you could get a nice 944/951/968 for that money and they'd mostly be faster, more comfortable, and handle better than an SC in that price range. The chief crime of the waterpumpers is they're cheaper to buy but cost as much to maintain as a 911.
But if you've got the 911 bug, for that price range you might try looking for a 1974-1977 car. These cars are unloved (like the 964s and 996s) but a lot have had the issues fixed with things like rebuilds or 3.0 swaps, but still run cheaper than the SC/Carrera.
Here's an example.