According to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s Weekly Applications Survey, demand for loans to buy homes rose for the second consecutive week. The seasonally adjusted Purchase Index – which is an indicator of future home sales – was up 1 percent from the week before, providing further evidence of a shift from a refinance dominated market to one with increasing purchase activity. The Market Composite Index, which measures total mortgage application volume, fell 1.2 percent, however, due to a 3 percent drop in the Refinance Index. The refinance share of total mortgage activity was down for the eighth straight week, slipping to 53 percent of all applications. Mortgage rates, on the other hand, were largely unchanged. The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with conforming loan balances held steady, while jumbo loans and loans backed by the FHA saw a slight increase from the week before. The MBA’s weekly survey has been conducted since 1990 and covers 75 percent of all retail residential mortgage applications. More here.