I'm a counselor/therapist. One of my clients was an Israeli psychologist, now in the U.S. for R&R. His work in Israel was treating children in Sderot for PTSD. More than 25% of the children of Sderot suffer from PTSD. The shelters help them stay alive, but the constant fear and need to run for shelter creates real mental health problems.

I would second the D3200 recommendation. Also look at factory refurbs. I've purchased several refurbs and found that they sometimes exceed the quality of new because they have been individually benched and tested. I've been shooting Nikon for over 40 years and have been happy with every camera. (I've also shot Canon, Pentax, Mamiya and-in the old days--Linhof ;-) Adorama and B&H both stand behind their refurbs. I'm hoping Cameta does too because I just ordered a new Nikon lens from them.

I agree with the recommendation of Wasabi and Blue Nook. Buying from B&H or Amazon, etc. I have been using 3rd party batteries for several years in several cameras--at least six batteries. Never had a problem.

I have had two lens repairs by C.R.I.S. in Chandler, AZ (criscam.com) They do warranty repair for a large number of companies including Canon, Nikon, and Sigma. They did one Sigma 18-250 lens, which always focused far too slowly, under warranty. The result was so satisfactory that when a second Sigma lens failed, I sent it to them. They brought it back to life for a very reasonable fee.

BTW I have two other Sigmas and they are fine, but the 18-250 is, at best, too soft for my needs. I've replaced it with a Nikon. Far better.