According to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s Weekly Applications Survey, refinancing demand increased again last week, rising 3 percent after a 2.5 percent gain in the previous week’s survey. But despite the improvement, total mortgage application demand was nearly flat, registering just a 0.3 percent increase due to a decline in purchase loan activity. That decline was caused, in part, by the effects of the federal government’s shutdown. Mike Fratantoni, MBA’s vice president of research and economics, said the shutdown had a notable impact on the mortgage market, as applications for government programs dropped more than 7 percent to their lowest level since December 2007. The survey also found the average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages up slightly from the week before. The MBA’s weekly survey covers more than 75 percent of all U.S. retail residential mortgage applications. More here.