However, in MA at this point in time, SR9 = $400 new and a Glock 17/19 (Gen3 or 4) = ~$700 used. In the end, that was the determining factor for me. But I am still trying to find a reasonably priced Glock for my collection.
Keep looking, they are out there. A year or so ago at Marlboro one of the vendors in the back had a Gen3 G17 with some slide/holster wear on it for like $459. The gun SAT THERE the whole time I was at the show, probably because people were wonky because of the holster wear, but frankly that isn't a big deal. (And for the doubting thomases, that seller was willing to sell anything he had on display to MA residents with an LTC). There are other deals out there too if you keep your eyes peeled. Serial prefix hunting on Gunbroker also works, but it'll take you some time, and you have to make sure the remote FFL isn't a douche who won't ship into MA.
I'll also take a moment to add.... while we're on the topic of gun prices.... Another way of looking at this purchasing decision.... one has to ask the reasoning behind the purchase. If it's a defensive gun that is going to get good use through lots of practice every year, than a couple of hundred bucks here or there shouldn't be a big issue. The old rule I use is this- "Is it going to cost me a case of ammo or less to upgrade to the gun I actually want?" If the answer is yes, then any price issues are a non starter, really. If you are going to take a handgun and pour thousands of rounds through it in the next 5 years, then the price difference of the gun is effectively lost in the noise in the long term. I'm not suggesting people should "overpay" for anything, hardly (as there really is no need to overpay for a Glock or anything else, if you are resourceful and patient) but if you look at the purchase as an investment, this makes sense when you think about it long enough.
On the other hand, for folks who get to the range 3 times a year, due to not being able to afford ammo, or otherwise, then I can see the purchase price of the gun being a bigger issue, or for that matter, the guys who get free lead and cast their own bullets, then the price of the gun plays a bigger role. I can understand the "bi monthly plinker" guy who burns up a few boxes of WWB val pak every year wanting the cheaper gun all the time. Outside of those kinds of scenarios, opting for the cheaper gun, over the long term, can be a sort of false economics, unless it just so happens to be that you can shoot the cheaper gun better and are more comfortable with it. I know plenty of guys who can't stand Glocks no matter how much they try to acclimate themselves to the platform, and obviously for them there are far better choices out there, instead of wasting time trying to fight with a gun. (Kind of like what I did fighting with HKs for the better part of 10 years until I realized that most of them don't fit my hands, with the exception of the P7M8) Even in that case though I don't know if I would go for an SR9- I'd probably be picking up a "used, already repaired" M&P 9, which routinely show up on the classifieds here for $500 or less.
-Mike
