Under the terms of a memorandum of understanding that representatives of both signed amid a CSBS government relations gathering in Washington, the two aim to establish a way to efficiently work together in comparing notes on lenders and servicers in their jurisdictions.

The memorandum furthers FHFA's work monitoring the counterparty risk of the government-related mortgage investors it oversees and the states' regulation of nonbanks. Those investors, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, work with many servicers and lenders.

"The development of an information sharing framework is an important milestone that will better equip both FHFA and state regulators to oversee our respective regulated entities," FHFA Director Sandra Thompson said in a press release.

The development suggests the FHFA and state regulators will continue a trend in which they have worked more closely together over time.

"Establishing information sharing opens the door to a more collaborative oversight process," said CSBS Board Chair Lise Kruse, who also serves as North Dakota's commissioner of financial institutions.

Information sharing may revolve around financial concerns like liquidity but also could extend to other regulatory matters both entities have an interest in keeping an eye on such as data security.

Such concerns have increasingly led the state regulators group and the FHFA to find they have coordinated interests.

While the regulatory role of the states and the federal agency are distinct, broad mortgage industry discussions with the former resulted in prudential standards for nonbanks that have some parallels with the FHFA's requirements.

Several agencies and regulatory bodies have signed similar agreements for information sharing. 

The state regulators group has nonbank MOUs with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development. The Federal Housing Finance Agency also has an MOU with the department, and engages in information sharing with the CFPB.