I'll try to keep my SS evangelizing to a minimum, because there's a whole other board for that. All my bikes are singlespeed (giving me six speeds in total – easy quiz!), and ease of maintenance remains a draw despite my reasonable skills as a mechanic. Agree SS shouldn't be overhyped, but neither should it be discounted even if James wants to do some touring; I've gone much further than 5 miles with mine, without tedium. One option would be to get something with horizontal dropouts, making it easier to convert if desired, not to mention run that Rohloff if his budget expands...