Flat top 440, e street heads, .550 solid cam, rpm intake, 850/950 carb, 1-7/8 headers....... 525-ish hp.
In any 1/2 way decent B body under 3700lbs race weight with a decent converter, 4.10's and good tires....... That's 11's all day long.
For an A body I'd do a 408/416, the new TF heads, victor intake, QFT "850" carb, .550-.570 solid cam, 9.5 converter.
Doing them for 7k, you'd be doing plenty of it yourself.
You plan the build, it just costs what it costs.
I did the B-body combo that he listed but bumped up the cubes to 505 since I needed a crank anyway. I built the entire drivetrain myself save for block machining and narrowing of the Dana. I have $7500 just in the engine and that is starting with an $80 block! You could probably knock $1000-$1500 off if you didn't do cnc porting or roller cam.
Overall, it makes for a very reliable, fast combo that doesn't require expensive fuel.
