If the person indebted dies or conveys away his estate or interest before the commencement of a suit on the contract, the suit may be commenced and prosecuted against his heirs or whoever holds the estate or interest which he had in the premises at the time the labor or materials were performed or furnished. Or, if a suit is commenced in his lifetime, it may be prosecuted against his executors, administrators, heirs or assigns in like manner as if the estate or interest had been mortgaged to secure the debt.