If you are in the market for a new door, you have probably started looking at the price tags, so it is important to protect your investment. I have listed a few things to keep in mind:
Mahogany doors are a great choice… The wood is beautiful, and, should the door incur weather damage, it is quite resilient; damage that might be permanent on a lighter door (such as pine, for example) will be more evident and harder to disguise in the refinishing process.
Which brings us to the finish of your new door… A darker stain is always better. Again, should your door incur weather damage, it will be easier to camouflage any imperfections if the original stain is darker. You will find a plethora of options when deciding on a color for your door, so I suggest going no lighter than Special Walnut (a Minwax stain).
This information is simply based on my experience refinishing doors over the past 10 years; working with wood is not an exact science, nor is it an art of perfection, so I challenge you to embrace both the beauty and the flaws of your natural wood door.