ORIGINAL: TFF
If you want to build and the money is not too tight, I would get an RTF/ARF and a kit of a like style trainer. One gets you in the air fast; the other is going to do a couple of things. One it can be a back up; as with training, the planes get beat up a bit. Second, trainers are the easiest to build and getting your feet wet with them can show you a lot of things before you build your dream plane instead of panics over details with that one. Your skills are also equal being a beginner. Once you can fly well you wont want to build a trainer. To make it different from the primary plane you could build the wing flat making it a bit more aerobatic, make it a tail dragger makes you know how to handle one, add working flaps something to play around with; things that will add to your abilitys but not too far of a stretch if the plane had to be pressed into service after the demise of the other.
I like TFF's suggestion. If you're leaning ultimately toward building, get a trainer ARF and a very similar kit to build. You can get through the initial difficulties with the ARF and be building at the same time. I think you'll find the kit gives you opportunities to learn a great deal while having a reference sitting right there and you can make cosmetic improvements of your own choosing. And you might be surprised that, assuming you take your time and build the kit well, the kit built will not only fly better than the ARF but also last longer.