Kubota's are nice... but you can buy two JD300's for the price of a similar Kubota. Plus... parts are CRAZY expensive. We have a $9K (hand me down) Kubota... just lost the bearings on the deck... $1490!

ZT's are nice too...especially if you are just mowing. BUT...if you ever want to rig up a small utility trailer to haul piles of leaves, branches, maybe a little gravel for the driveway... get a tractor style like the JD.