I have had a 2500 Yukon XL with the 8.1, a 2500HD with 6.0 gas, and now my Express 3500 with 6.0. With the exception of the others had 4wd, I love my Express. I went with a 12 passenger, as it was shorter than the HD truck, and I thought one of my teenagers were going to be driving it as their designated driver. I love the space, gets much better fuel mileage than either of the others, and tows my trailer in Michigan perfectly fine.
As a suggestion, you can find them Certified Used on dealer lots, or use the gmfactorypreownedcollection.com to find 2016's for under $24k with less than 15k miles.