In addition to price points, there are characteristics you can look for in wheels, such as spoke count, spoke used, lacing pattern, etc. All these play a role in the durability of wheels, but they are things that will be difficult to gauge unless you either shop in store or are willing to do some careful research online.

Good wheels don't have to be expensive, but you're not going to get a good custom built wheelset without spending $600 or so. I'm riding the stock DT Swiss R1700s that came with my TCR SL3 and I love them. They're well made, but not expensive. I believe you can have a set for about $400.