What happens when a buyer passes away before close of sale

[Alicia Arroyo]

Hello,

I am new to real-estate investing.  There has been a property that I am really interested in purchasing.  I contacted the listing agent via text about 3 weeks after it was on the market.  He told me the property was currently under contract and said nothing else to me.  About 3 or so weeks after that I reached out to another agent because I was not really sure what that meant and the other agent was ignoring me when I asked if under contract meant sold or pending.  I only asked again because quite some time passed and the listing is still marked as "active" not "pending" or "sold".  

I now have my own home one the market and I am working with an agent.  I recently asked my agent what was going on with that property.  I told her how it's been listed for over 100 days and it was still showing active.  She did some digging and told me that the person buying the property passed away. I told her to let me know if there are any opportunities for me to see the property. She said she would let me know.  I am worrying she may forget though since she seems ultra busy.  I also asked the listing buyer but he has been ignoring me. 

My question is how long could this typically take?  Since I have not seen the property in person yet can I contact the seller once the contract is up?  I would rather go through my agent but not sure what would be in my best interest. 

I was also thinking don't buyer's and seller's have so many days during each step of the selling process to complete certain things so a house won't sit in limbo?  What is the longest that should take?  I am super interested in the property and I think it would be a good investment.  I don't want it to slip away.  Any advice?  I live in IL if that makes a difference. This would be my first multifamily property so any advice helps.