IMO you should hold out for an 8 inch dob, not a lot more expensive ($100) than a six inch, but a very good compromise aperture wise since your wish is a 12 inch. You could either wait until you have sufficient funds or maybe sell something of value (e.g. the white fluffy dog
) that's no longer required, it wouldn't take much to raise the extra few dollars between your budget of $250 and $399.