<b>Information is now more important to housebuilders than land, argues Brian Green. Customer and government pressure to improve new homes means that it&amp;’s not what you have bought that defines your business, but what you know about your buyers </b><br><b>Housebuilders buy land, build houses and sell them - it&amp;’s as straightforward as that. But perhaps that is changing. Perhaps what they do now is provide homes for people. The successful ones will be doing that better than the rest, prompted by a government which is now demanding that the industry comes into line on quality, sustainability and innovation.</b><br> This distinction between the old and new roles may seem rather academic or too subtle to mention, but the difference is significant. Beyond semantic niceties, in practical terms it matters.<p></p><p> In the first view of their role, the housebuilder relies on its core resource - land. But in the second view, while land remains crucial, the raw material becomes information - information about customers, planning, product developments, aesthetics, economic and market trends, competitors and a host more. All this information is then put into the analysis pot and stewed to build the knowledge that will drive the business.</p><p><b><b>knowledge is power</b></b><br> There is …