In terms of finding an inexpensive alternative to Maya, I think Carrara is an excellent choice.  Actually it's a pretty narrow field of software that could possibly fill those shoes, at least inexpensively.  Carrara, possibly Blender... drawing a blank otherwise..

Yeah, there seem to be less choices than just a few years ago.  Being a long time Poser user Shade 3D Professional has always tempted me, as it's in a similar price range (and could be purchased as a competitive upgrade from Carrara through its previous distributors - not sure if that's still the case) and features Poser compatibility.  Modo, Maya and Houdini also have indie and subscription versions, but I can't say I've looked too closely at either.    Just the other day on Steam I discovered Ray Supreme, which is described as "a full-featured, powerful and easy to use 3D modeling, texturing and rendering software that features many of the tools you would expect from any professional 3D software".  Never even heard of it before.

But I haven't completely given up on Carrara quite yet...  Just waiting for Daz to finally get all of their ducks in a row.