Then around noontime or so I check again and it's pending with a contract.

Overturned in King County Court, appeal pending. 2017 Rapidly rising cost of rental housing Rental Agreement Regulation amendment SMC 7.24.35,36,38 limits move in charges and requires provision of payment plan.

Only thing that would concern me would be the pending divorce.

While this title company would not close while the earnest money is pending,  another will. 

I told my daughter there is one word she should be concentrating on and that is :LISTINGS  LISTINGS = MONEY    representing buyers pretty tough.. but she does have 3 in pending where her buyers were successful but i had to pull out our big tool box to give her all the tricks we have used over the years to get in first position.and just glad i bought 18 months ago..

I would also run the addresses through the enforcement database and ensure that there is no pending demo order or some other insidious board of health issue. 

The house is pending.

The only off market deals I search for on there are pending Tax Deeds and Lis Pendens for foreclosures as @Wayne Brooks mentioned.  

Do you have any contingencies like pending inspection, etc?

Supposedly, he could not refinance because an inspection was pending.