One of our dogs is a rescue (the aussie), who was way too much dog for the full time employed and small-apartment dwelling owners. It was a private rehoming and they were clearly in over their heads. When we got him he was so scared he'd shake and bark at almost anything. People, hats, trash cans, you name it. He's nowhere near so easily startled anymore.
Old Dog was technically bought from an oops litter a farmer had for less than $100, but that's cheaper than any shelter places dogs for and she came vetted (shots and dewormed to 8 weeks). If the puppies hadn't been sold they'd have ended up at a shelter anyhow.
The Killer Husky is AKC. (Registered purebred.) She was $600 and we drove 4 hours one way for her. We were in an apartment at the time with a mostly enclosed back yard and it was a HUGE 3 bedroom with a balcony and this long carpeted hallway perfect for racing down. It was not so much an apartment as a quadplex (like a duplex but with four units, not two.) None of the rescues would adopt to us because we were in an apartment even though we already had one well-behaved large active dog in perfect condition so we bought a puppy instead.
Ironically every time we've tried to rescue from a rescue-rescue we get turned down for various reasons. 9_9; Even though our dogs are great.