Better to buy modified or do yourself?

I am new to all of this and could use a little advice...

My brother used to have a jeep and I used to go off-roading/rock-crawling with him. I loved doing that and really miss it. I have begged him to get another Jeep so we can go more, but it's not in the cards right now. So, I have decided why wait for him when I can buy my own Jeep wrangler!

I am still learning about what I need and what I should be looking for. I do not need anything too major right now, since I am still learning and new to all of this. I want something that I can throw my dogs in the back and still drive down the interstate to the lake. However, I want to be able to take it off-roading and on some trails. I am not too concerned with rock-crawling at this point in time.

Would it be better for me to keep looking until I find what I want/need or should I just buy a stock jeep and have the modifications I want done to it? It seems there are pros/cons to both and I could use some advice!