Why couldn't you jump to where you needed to go?
If your destination is too far for a single jump, you can plot a course and do it in multiple jumps (obviously check the fuel requirement!).
Always check that you can do a mission before accepting it.
The Hauler is a good, cheap ship for small volume trading. It works well for the rare goods trading I mentioned before.
I went from a Sidewinder to a Hauler and traded rare goods until I had the money for a Cobra...
Coriolis is an excellent site for mocking up ship builds, and checking prices and stats:
http://coriolis.io/