Head gasket issue...rebuild engine or swap for lower milage engine but no history

[patannnj]

I have a 2006 automatic with 240k miles. I purchased it used about 10 years ago when it had only 90k miles & it had a tick in the engine. Yeah..I know this is usually the sound of death for an engine but I was oblivious. I had the timing belt service done on time, only M1 oil changes every 4k miles. My mechanic recently diagnosed a head gasket leak by finding exhaust in the coolant. The mechanic is very experienced with Subaru engines & wants to do a rebuild of the upper engine and I've total confidence in his skilled for the job. However a friend who is a Subaru enthusiast was concerned with rebuilding an 18 year old engine with 240k miles, sure that when it was opened there would be other issues. He wants me to do a engine swap for a younger engine (which is harder to find then I believed) instead. So I finally get to my question which path would you consider better? Have a skilled mechanic rebuild the heads of an engine I have maintained over the last 130k miles of or swap for a lower mileage engine which may or may not have been maintained..I'm very torn. I apologize if this is a silly question from an inexperienced Baja owner but I've come to really love this little truck & I really want to keep it around. Thank you for taking the time to read my short book & any insights would be greatly appreciated.

[anarchy1024]

What about a remanufactured engine? When I blew my engine in 2011 (hooning in a parking lot after a snowfall; not the engine's fault), the mechanic I brought it to said I could get a used engine or a remanufactured one for just a bit more (which he said is effectively a "zero-kilometer engine"). Even had to follow the new engine break-in process. Same engine is still in my Baja, with at least 250k km on it... and it hasn't had an easy life (but it has had an interesting, well-maintained life).

Not sure if that's a viable option, or even still an option, but that's what I went with, and it's been perfect.