"I See a Red Door, and I Want it Painted Black." No, Keep it RED!

I like the Rolling Stones, but I can't agree with this lyric. Keep the door red. If it isn't already red, paint it red! At least that's the advice I often give my sellers when they are prepping their house for sale. I've always loved red front doors, so I decided to find out the symbolism behind them. Turns out there's quite a bit depending on where you look.

In the early American tradition, a red door symbolized a home was a welcoming place for weary travelers to stay. It was also thought to have signified a safe house on the Underground Railroad, a route for African slaves escaping captivity and traveling north during the 19th century.

In the Chinese philosophy of Feng Shui, the door is considered the mouth of the Chi where the energy enters the home. You may have heard that a red door in Feng Shui is lucky, but that isn't accurate. You should paint your door according to the direction it faces. Red is the color of the fire element and symbolizes warmth, excitement and passion. It's the best choice for a south facing door, and a great choice for southwest and northeast facing doors as well.

The symbolism of the red door has religious significance as well. In Biblical times the Hebrew slaves were instructed to smear blood of a lamb on their front doors to protect their first born from the angel of death, aka Passover. In old Catholicism, the doors of churches were painted red to symbolize the blood of Christ. Passing through the red door meant you were on holy ground. As a result of both of these examples, some people believe a red door protects the occupants from evil.

In Scotland, the significance of a red door is very different. They paint the doors red there to signify the mortgage has been paid in full. Now that's a reason we can all celebrate!

I think the best reason of all to paint your front door red is that it just looks great. No matter if you choose red or black or blue or even bright yellow, painting the front door a different color from the rest of the house and trim and choosing a color that stands out from the street will do wonders for the curb appeal and selling price of your house.