I've been looking at the light helicopter market and I'm intrigued to see what will happen to prices in the near future.
On paper the R44 might well tick a lot of boxes, but the Robinsons do seem to divide opinions. If you reallly do want one then 'new' can't make sense - the depreciation could be horrendous. I think there'll be a lot of bargains in the 'nearly new' market.
But, tend to agree with the general sentiment here, Jet Ranger or 480/480B. Initial and running costs might be higher, but buy wisely in hard times and your capital should be better protected.