IMHO, there will not be a lot of difference between the two except for color. You are looking at entry level self propelled mowers, if it starts, drives, and cuts grass be happy. Either engine will give years of reliable service if reasonably maintained. Actually it will likely outlast the rest of the mower, five years is a reasonable life expectancy in this price range. Now before all the Craftsman owners start flaming me, this is average. Some will do better but many others will fall by the wayside earlier. The big difference between the low and high priced mowers are cutting performance and longevity. I have a near new MTD with a Honda engine that stays in the shed (the landlord owns it) and a 15 year old Honda (mine)that cuts and bags better than any mower I have owned.

What about Snapper, they have 2 different walk behind mower lines now. Their top of the line seems nearly identical to mowers they were making decades ago. Everything seems old time heavy duty. Which leads to a few big positives. Reliable proven design, dependable, and when yo do need a part chances are it will be available. (A problem I had with a 10 yr old Murray, sure those generic parts are available at big retailers, as well as some parts for more recent models, but they like to keep you buying new equipment every few years.) Plus they are mostly sold at dealers who are also service shops. When you need your mower serviced, the big retailer wont be the one you bring it to. Look at many of the mowers they have discounted in their discount area. Usually the ones returned for one reason or another often with the sticker of the local repair shop that serviced the machine. Snappers other line is new and designed and priced to compete with mowers sold at the big retailers. Im not sure about the dependability, but if you are using them with different teen operators and on Camp sized property with hills and such with enough area needed mow that two mowers would be needed to cut it quickly then it may be wise to purchase from an authorized service / dealer like Snapper. And the prices online at Snapper are suggested list only. When I got my new Snapper I had moved from a flat 7000 sq ft lawn to a sloped 20,000 sq ft lawn. Considering I had 3 times the amount of lawn, I definetly wanted self propelled, mulching, and a high quality motor. So I picked the old style Snapper mulching deck with the 6hp Kawasaki engine that is used on many commercial models for $599 , $100 under list without bargaining. If I had gone with the standard B&S engine it probably would have been closer to the price of the Deere yout mentioning since the mulch only B&S Snapper is listed at $499 and your planning to get two so you could probably get a nice deal. Ariens also makes a nice mower I was considering, but the Ariens dealer wasnt as close as my local Snapper dealer. Also considering the other equpiment you have it would be even more of a reason for me to buy from a Dealer / Service shop as opposed to a big retailer.

I mentioned Honda earlier, but I'm rethinking my answer. My favorite gas mower is the only one that does not have self-propel! It is a maybe 30 year old no name (from a local hardware store) it has a B&S 3.75hp engine. This thing is very light, and is a delight to turn; unlike my Sears and Toro self-propel models. I love to push this thing around. The newer stuff just wants to go in a straight line. Got it two years ago for $22 from a retired gent.

We have both an electric and a gas mower. I think the electric is great for the flat areas PLUS because it's quiet, I can run it before the neighborhood's 10 a.m. weekend no-mowing convention (it's not a "law" but we do talk about those early risers) or later in the evening (after I hear we're in for a storm overnight or the next day). An electric is too much work for our whole yard because the lawn slopes too much. Downhill is just fine but our gas mower is self-propelling and gets back uphill without too much extra work from me. I would guess that in Florida, your grass grows like crazy all the time. Maybe you could just count your mowing as your main exercise and do 20 minutes every day with an electric mower. The gas mower needs more maintenance than the electric, and the gas does smellwhich might be even stronger in your weather. If you do get a gas machine, and start smelling it inside the house, don't hesitate to replace the gasket around the door That said, with the better and better (longer lasting and stronger) batteries available every year, we're in for a battery (no-cord) electric if/when ours bites the dust. Hey! since you're no longer paying a service, you might look into buying one of those lawn mowing robots. I've seen them--they are like that vac'ing robot you can find on youtube riding cats around the house. I can just see one zipping around, covered with little lizards going for a joy ride!