I personally would not buy a Singer in that price range, and I know that the Singer Fashion Mate is not highly regarded by people who collect older Singer machines.
You might want to consider buying online in order to get a Sears Kenmore or Janome in your price range.
For reviews of models you are considering, join
http://www.patternreview.com . Here is a review on what may be the Brother you are considering:
http://sewing.patternreview.com/Sewi.../Review/1/3286
but you should look for other reviews just to make sure there is some reliability with this model (and, in fact, that this is the same model you are looking at!).