Thanks for the input so far. Looks like the expected names are, in fact, the contenders in the low-price nylon string arena. Yamaha is kind of obvious, I admit, and I did already know about Cordoba (but was unaware of their lowest priced models).
Think I'll also call the smaller shops to see if they have any decent used models that might offer a bit more quality relative to the admittedly tiny budget.
Other input also welcome, by the way...
Dirk