If your host has been providing reliable service and has good reputation (these two usually come together), there is really no need to upgrade your hosting package before your site has outgrown it.
If you’re anticipating to add BuddyPress and an e-commerce store, at the very least you should consider upgrading only when these have been implemented. There is no point in paying extra every month now for a huge increase in traffic that has not yet occurred, and will likely not occur until you have at least implemented the additional components above to your site. Even then, you might not need to upgrade your hosting package.
Remember that with hosting packages, you’re effectively buying resources to serve your visitors. More resources will not be beneficial to you or your visitors if those resources are not being utilised, but they will still cost money. Given that upgrading hosting packages is relatively quick – you’ll probably need just hours instead of days or weeks – there’s really no real need to upgrade until your site’s load demands it.
Also, keep in mind that while VPS offer potentially much greater performance and security, it’s also much more difficult to setup, optimise, and maintain. You’ll have to be familiar with Linux (assuming Linux-based VPS) and command line interface and a lot of new and technical learning to really make use of all that a VPS has to offer. It has a much steeper learning curve than a shared hosting.
As for the costs, an entry-level VPS package from a reputable company starts from about $25/month. These have really limited amount of RAM though, which you’ll quickly find to be the most precious commodity for a VPS if you embark on that road.
As a side note, unlimited anything by a hosting service is really just marketing gimmick. Those should be the first descriptions to be ignored when shopping for web hosts, and raise some red flags even in some cases, especially for lesser-known hosts.
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