Whyte T130. Newer and what you like and in your budget. I ride 2017 and 2018 hardtails. Both great and capable. The 2018 is still very similar to current models. The 2017 could use a degree or two of slack. My observation is there was a bigger jumps in making bikes substantially slacker from 2015-2018. The newer 2018 will probably be plenty capable for what you want. Bonus is it is the make and model you have been looking at already.