Applications to purchase a home rose for the fourth straight week, jumping 11% despite a slow climb in mortgage rates.

Buyer demand kept mortgage application in the positive last week, up 0.3% compared with the previous week, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s seasonally adjusted index.

"There continues to be a stark recovery in purchase applications, as most large states saw increases in activity last week. In the ten largest states in MBA's survey, New York - after a 9 percent gain two weeks ago - led the increases with a 14 percent jump. Illinois, Florida, Georgia, California and North Carolina also had double-digit increases last week," said Joel Kan, MBA's Associate Vice President of Economic and Industry Forecasting.

"We expect this positive purchase trend to continue - at varying rates across the country - as states gradually loosen social distancing measures, and some of the pent-up demand for housing returns in what is typically the final weeks of the spring home buying season."

Added Kan, "Mortgage rates stayed close to record-lows, but refinance applications decreased for the fourth consecutive week, driven by a 5 percent drop in conventional refinances. Despite the downward trend over the last month, mortgage lenders remain busy. Refinance activity was up 200 percent from a year ago."

The refinance share of mortgage activity decreased to 67.0 percent of total applications from 70.0 percent the previous week.

The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with conforming loan balances ($510,400 or less) increased to 3.43 percent from 3.40 percent.

The average contract interest rate for 15-year fixed-rate mortgages decreased to 2.92 percent from 2.93 percent.

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