$212 ready to fly isn't really too bad.

LiPos take a little more care, but they're hardly in the category of "likely to explode".

Balsa is not "durable". In fact, I've seen foamies survive crashes that would have splintered Balsa. Balsa is stiffer and different, but not always better.

And you can use the electronics in your next foamy.

Just like anything else, switching to electric from nitro requires some initial investment. If $200 is too much to invest in a plane, you might want to find a different hobby. And never fly anything you can't afford to crash!

Brad