If you are interested in after sale service, forget the mass retailers and don't give anything with a Chinese engine such as Yard Works or Cub Cadet more than a quick glance. I suggest looking at the Briggs website under dealer locater, they will likely also have Honda powered products.

Honda HRR series..

front or rear drive is totally up to you (try each one out if you can).honda or briggs is your best engines.horsepower matters, get the biggest you can get.service of mower from a dealer only. box stores wont service mowers.

Unless you have a yard with a lot of holes (in which case you'll want large rear wheels) I recommend a mower with rear drive. You'll get better traction, especially if the grass bag starts to accumulate weight from clippings.

You can't go wrong with Toro or Honda or John Deere. All are quality designs, are built with fairly good materials, and will come with reliable engines. I would absolutely recommend against any of the other brands of mowers sold at Lowes, Home Depot, Wal-Mart, or other similar stores.

As has been pointed out, Lowes, Home Depot, etc. do not service or repair mowers. This is yet another reason to buy a Toro, Honda, or Deere, as most mower shops will have parts and trained mechanics for those brands. Many mower shops will not stock parts for mowers like Yard Man, Task Force, etc.

Don't worry about horsepower. Any mower you buy today will have adequate horsepower for most any lawn, unless you let your grass grow to 6 inches tall between cuttings.

PLEASE educate yourself about how to maintain your mower, especially at the end of the season as this will save you substantial frustration, money, and trips to the repair shop in the spring. In short, you should learn how to add fuel stabilizer to your gas tank in the fall, and how to replace the mower's spark plug and air filter. All are VERY easy steps to take, even for someone with little mechanical knowledge.

Look at:

http://www.briggsandstratton.com/engine_power/mowers/buying-guide_walking-mower.pdf

Watch this video:

http://www.yardsmarts.com/videos/index.asp?v=4

Thanks to all of you for your valuable inputs.

Based on what I've read here, the mowers most recommended (in no particular order):

Snapper (Mulching, or Hi-Vac if you always bag)
Toro (Super Recycler)
Honda (HRX or HRR series)

Everyone has their own opinion about which is the best, but IMO you won't go wrong with any of these choices.

I believe all of these are rear wheel drive.