_________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Skylights
BRIGHT outlook
How skylight innovation is impacting the 2026 home building landscape. By Ross Vandermark
Today’ s homeowners are looking for more than just a beautiful house. They want homes that support their health, align with their environmental values, and integrate seamlessly with modern technology. As a result, homebuilders are rethinking design features to better meet rising expectations for performance, comfort, and convenience.
Surprisingly, many of these evolving demands are being addressed through innovations at the ceiling.
Once considered a purely aesthetic upgrade, skylights are experiencing a resurgence. Thanks to advancements in materials and technology, modern skylights are emerging as an essential tool for builders looking to deliver three main home builder priorities: wellness, sustainability, and smart home integration.
One: The shift toward wellness-oriented design is continuing to grow.
From air filtration to biophilic design, homeowners want spaces that actively support their health.
Skylights contribute on multiple fronts. Their positioning overhead more effectively delivers light deeper into your space with better quality, balance and less glare than a vertical window. In fact, they provide twice the daylight of a same-sized vertical window, helping to reduce reliance on electric lighting. But more importantly, natural daylight plays a direct role in human biology. Studies show daylight exposure improves mood, supports vitamin D production, boosts serotonin, and regulates circadian rhythms, all critical factors in sleep, immunity, and cognitive function.
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