The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) said home purchase activity increased last week, allowing for a small gain in its Market Composite Index. That index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume, increased 0.5 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis although it was down 1.0 percent compared with the previous week before adjustment.    The Refinance Index decreased 2 percent from the previous week and was 40 percent lower than the same week one year ago. The refinance share of mortgage activity decreased to 26.9 percent of total applications from 27.3 percent the previous week. [refiappschart] The seasonally adjusted Purchase Index increased 2 percent although it was 0.1 percent lower compared to a week earlier before adjustment. The index was down 32 percent from the same week in 2022.   [purchaseappschart] “The 30-year fixed mortgage rate declined for the third consecutive week to 6.73 percent, while other mortgage rates saw mixed results,” Joel Kan, MBA’s Vice President and Deputy Chief Economist said.  “ Purchase applications increased, driven by a 2 percent gain in conventional purchase applications and a 3 percent increase in FHA purchase activity ,” “First-time homebuyers account for a large share of FHA purchase loans, and this increase is a sign that while buyer interest is there, activity continues to be constrained by low levels of affordable inventory. Refinance applications continued their decline after the previous week’s increase, with the refinance share of applications just below 27 percent.”