Not able to download any app from Windows store (Windows 8.1)

Hi

Apologies for the long post - but the issue is really frustrating to the core.

I purchased an HP laptop 6 months back with Windows 8.

I upgraded to 8.1 a couple of months back. Initially I was using a Microsoft account; after a few days I switched to a Local account.

Since then I have not been able to download any applications from the store.

I face the following errors at different times:

1. Most often - the download fails with the error message 'Your purchase couldn't be completed.  This app can't be purchased because your current Internet connection is too slow.  Please try again using a different connection'. I am sure my internet connection is fine - i can download at high speeds from other sites.
2. If  I reboot my laptop, then the download begins, but gets stuck with a 'Pending' indicator forever.
3. The third issue which happens at times is that the Store doesn't even load, just the Progress bar (circling dots) and the green splash screen are displayed.

I have tried several things several times. for e.g.

1. wsreset -> NO USE WHATSOEVER
2. Disabled my antivirus - AVG Free - NO USE WHATSOEVER
3. Cleared the C:\Windows\SoftwareDistribution folder - the problem here is that this only works if we stop the Windows Update  Service - BUT THE Windows Update Service itself is stuck in 'STOPPING' state. It can neither be stopped nor restarted.
4. In continuance to point 2, If I reboot and clear the C:\Windows\SoftwareDistribution folder, it works the first time. However after a 'Sleep' or laptop lid close, one of the above mentioned 3 problems start occurring - mostly 1 or 2.
5. Ran the following command -

          powershell -ExecutionPolicy Unrestricted Add-AppxPackage -DisableDevelopmentMode -Register $Env:SystemRoot\WinStore\AppxManifest.xml

         As in point 3 here, it may work once but thereafter problems start again.

     5.  Also tried the Windows Update troubleshooter, which fixed 2 problems - after which the Store worked a couple of times. But it started erroring again after a sleep.

Some problems that I see for sure:

1. Windows Update Service hangs very frequently - remains in Stopping state
2. Some errors noticed in the Event Viewer are:

The program WWAHost.exe version 6.3.9600.16384 stopped interacting with Windows and was closed. To see if more information about the problem is available, check the problem history in the Action Center control panel.

 Process ID: 1968

 Start Time: 01cef4079d93e117

 Termination Time: 35

 Application Path: C:\Windows\System32\WWAHost.exe

 Report Id: 2e90aba1-5ffb-11e3-bea0-b8763f390464

 Faulting package full name: winstore_1.0.0.0_neutral_neutral_cw5n1h2txyewy

 Faulting package-relative application ID: Windows.Store

The activation of the CLSID {E60687F7-01A1-40AA-86AC-DB1CBF673334} timed out waiting for the service wuauserv to stop.

The machine-default permission settings do not grant Local Activation permission for the COM Server application with CLSID

{C2F03A33-21F5-47FA-B4BB-156362A2F239}

 and APPID

{316CDED5-E4AE-4B15-9113-7055D84DCC97}

 to the user NT AUTHORITY\LOCAL SERVICE SID (S-1-5-19) from address LocalHost (Using LRPC) running in the application container Unavailable SID (Unavailable). This security permission can be modified using the Component Services administrative tool.

Any help will be appreciated. I do not want to switch to a Microsoft account. I would expect that with a local account also, I should be able to download applications with no hassles.

Thanks in advance

Vikas