Replacing furnace/ac thoughts

We are replacing our heat/ac unit, we received a proposal from a contractor that was recommend by a childhood friend who also works in the industry (but doesn't do forced air). The proposal seems reasonable and less than what we budgeted, but there are upgrade options that I'm unsure of. I don't think I'm going with any of the upgrades but want to make sure I'm not missing a good deal or something that we should definitely upgrade.

Background:
- 1366 square foot house
- Built in 1942
- 2 story
- Philadelphia area
- No pets or kids
- No history allergies or respiratory issues

My current thoughts:
- No UV lamp. I read there’s no scientific evidence they do that much.
- No humidifier. Since these can be installed easily later on, we’d ride out this winter and see how the humidity feels.
- Upgrading to the 2210 air purifier. Im not totally convinced this is necessary since neither of us have allergy issues, etc., but most people think these should be standard.
- Upgrading from the base TCJD 13 SEER to the TCJF 14.5 SEER (both 2.5 ton). This will get us to 16 SEER (variable-speed blower) and we would qualify for PECO rebates ($300), not that huge of a win but nice.

Thanks for reading and helping a n00b out. Let me know if I should provide any more info. Oh, we are also contemplating having a nest thermostat put in, are they as good as everyone hypes them up to be or is it just trendy?

Proposal:


Upgrades:

Just bumping this up, hopefully someone can help.

I'd recommend getting the highest SEER possible, especially if the rebates are available. You might want to also ask how much the media air cleaner replacements are going to cost you, and how often a replacement is necessary. Them things can get very costly.

Best thing to do is get another quote and see how they stack up. Get two more if possible...by comparing differences you'll be able to ask informed questions.

Don't settle for being the noob; we hire contractors to do this work because they can do it the job efficiently and cleanly, which save us the time/money of muddling through the job ourselves on the weekends. You CAN be informed about what sort of units they are going to install and if they are suitable for your home.

OP,
I have a Honeywell electronic air cleaner and it's been nothing but trouble. It is currently broken (again) and in place of the elements I put in a standard filter. Works fine. We also have an Aprilaire humidifier but it almost never goes on because the humidity in the house (Northern NJ) rarely goes below 30%. If I was doing it again I would skip the electronic air cleaner and the humidifier.
FWIW
YMMV

I don't see the point of an air purifier for forced air system.

If you want better air quality you can use a hepa filter for the intake, it is already build in filter system.