I was with the same view as to not pay for a type rating. I had a job flying as a turbo-prop captain (4000 TT), when I realized that I would not get any further as all my application was returned with "don't call us, we call you".
I paid for my 737-300/900 type rating and got a job right away on the 737. I have been flying the 737 now for almost a year and it has definitly paid off. If you have some flight time, around 500 hours, then I would say that the 737 type rating is the best value for the money. The aircraft is everywhere and still in production. It is used by airlines in all catagories, so it would be my best bet. It did pay off for me.
Good luck!
BlueVikingFlyer
