Pending sales of existing homes rose 5 percent in June from a downwardly revised May total, NAR reported this morning. This marks the largest monthly gain in the pending home sales index in more than three years, but it still lags 8.6 percent below its June 2006 level. NAR senior economist Lawrence Yun said the latest totals are encouraging, with pending home sales rising in each of the nation’s four regions. “However, it is too early to say if home sales have already passed bottom,” Yun said in a statement.