WASHINGTON D.C. — U.S. home sales saw a modest uptick in February, a phenomenon experts are attributing to the brief, almost imperceptible window where mortgage rates eased just enough to make the average American briefly forget the existential dread of homeownership. The National Association of Realtors reported a 1.7% increase, signaling that a fraction of the population briefly considered the possibility of not living in their parents' basement or a van down by the river.

“For about 72 hours, the numbers looked less like a ransom note and more like a very expensive grocery bill,” explained Dr. Evelyn Price, a housing market analyst at the Institute for Perpetual Disappointment. “That was enough to trigger a primal urge in some buyers to commit to a 30-year financial albatross before the rates inevitably climbed back to 'Are you kidding me?' levels.”

Prospective buyers, many of whom had been refreshing Zillow every 15 minutes for the past three years, reportedly saw the slight dip as a sign from the universe. “I saw 6.8% and thought, ‘Well, that’s practically free money compared to 7.1%,’” recounted Chad Peterson, 34, who just closed on a 900 sq. ft. condo with a view of a dumpster. “My financial advisor just sighed and said, ‘Good luck, Chad.’ I think that means he’s proud.”

The increase suggests that while affordability remains a distant dream, the human need for shelter, however costly, ultimately trumps all rational economic thought.