Sims 4 isn't as good as Sims 3 partly because it's not been expanded as far as Sims 3, and expansions and Game Packs are just a waiting game.
Sims 4 has more of a 'Let's party' bent than Sims 3's Family bent, which is a matter of taste. Once you have some money and vacation days stored up you can take your Sims partying and adventuring more often and I feel like that's when the fun kicks in.
As for building, Sims 4 is definitely missing some of the tools, but on the plus side here come glass roofs and a simplified gardening system (we really don't need ten different qualities of plants).