Most home buyers will not notice what brand of equipment is in the house. They are more interested in the age and how well it works.

I bought Carrier equipment nearly 3 years ago because the Carrier equipment I hade lasted 25 years with very few problems.

You are correct that the installation is critical. However you should not completely ignore the equipment itself. Do a search on Goodman in this forum and read about problems people have had. Then search for Trane, Carrier, and Rheem and compare the number of problems which have been posted.

Where did you read Trane is high priced due to advertising budgets? When was the last time you saw a Trane TV commercial or and ad in a magazine?

happs

I will assume you are sized correctly but that is alot of firepower on the AC side and of course that furnace is only 80% efficient.

I would prefer an upgrade price to the XR13, a nicer condenser than the XB series.

And you might want to look at the XR15 in a 5 ton model. I believe the 5 ton comes with two stg and certainly would be a less expensive alternative to the XL20i condenser.Verify with dealer.

The thermostat will work but it will not give you full two stg functionality. I would want a true two stg thermostat for that furnace.

You get all kind of opinions of Goodman Brand. Better than they use to be in the higher end mdls. Low end stay away from. I personally would not have it for my home unless strictly budget driving my decision.

I would want to know how long you intend to be in home.

IMO

All valid input. How comfortable do you want to be? Whats the efficiency of the units? How much will you be saving in the long run with whatever unit you purchase. Sometimes its a matter of pay now or pay later and its awesome that you are doing your homework. Most homeowners just look at the price tag and say give me that one, I can afford that one.

Have you thought on the XL16i? Your cost/efficiency will be so much better than the XB's, and would cost you less out of pocket than than the XL20i

I assure you that a trane is far superior than a goodman. period dot exclamation point.

I went with Trane XR-13 in our last home and loved it. (South Florida). I bought the "matched unit) air handler with new outside unit. But we replaced the copper too. The installer said it should always be replaced. My neighbors all had Goodman/Amana and they are loud. Our current home has an XR-13 and it's 6 years old with only one switch failure in the air handler. When looking for a new HVAC in the previous home I called ten different HVAC contractors. The prices were about 2-4k difference. You might look at getting your air ducts cleaned if you can get a decent price to do it before you change out the hvac. Just a thought...

In general Trane is a better brand and their unit is better built most of the time compare to Goodman.