A week after rebounding slightly, mortgage applications fell sharply in the third full week of July, marking the third decline in the past four weeks, the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) reported Wednesday. The index fell 6% from the previous week on an unadjusted basis. Refinance applications led the downturn, plunging 10% from the previous week and slipping 2% below their level from the same week one year ago. The refinance share of mortgage activity fell to 39.5% of mortgage activity from 41.2% the previous week. The U.S. Department of Agriculture share of applications fell to 0.4% from 0.5% the previous week.