b'Finding HomeWorking with Dennis HepworthBY ELLEN DONKERL ikemanyyoungfamilies,AlexandThe Rogers, on the day of the final walk through, movedneighborhood and feel really fortunate and thankful KatieRogersneverimaginedthatthat it worked out. In the short time that theyve havingkidswouldrequiresomuchbeen in the house, a few families stopped by to wel-room. What seemed a spacious homecome them with cookies. At Christmas time their in West Orange became cramped af- block had a party. And during the pandemic they ter having their second child and thateven gathered outside for a social distancing happy gotthemthinkingaboutmoving.to this larger home in Verona to accommodate theirhour. growing family.Thankfully, they knew who to call. Sincetheirmove,theRogershavecontacted DennisHepworthhadhelpedtheRogersfindDennisforhisrecommendationsonresources. their first house in West Orange. At the time, Alexthat they wouldnt have noticed. But the next homeSometimes hes even come by to help himself. Case had wanted to use his USAA benefits and Dennisthey visiteda colonialwas a winner. Yes, the inte- in point: When the Rogers were making plans to was assigned as the realtor to help him. They feltrior was worn, but Alex and Katie could see beyondhave their oil tank moved into the basement, Dennis fortunate that they connected with him. Alex says,the sky-blue carpeting and outdated wall colors. brought a friend to help haul out an old workbench Dennis was so attentive and really just incredible toDennis helped the Rogers put together a winningso the tank would fit. Alex says, Dennis is super work with. That was in 2014 right before their sonbid, advising them to include a personal letter. By No- knowledgeable and has an incredible network that was born.vember 2019 they were in the house, but not beforehe can refer you to. You can call him day or night. A few years later, with the addition of a baby girl,they had removed all of the carpeting and wallpaper. Hes always right there with an answer. they approached Dennis about their next move, ask- During this time Dennis was also working on ing him to school them on the Glen Ridge market.selling the Rogers West Orange home. Alex says, Katie had grown up there and it was the sort of smallThe marketing push that he made to get it sold was townthattheywerelookingfor.Dennisquicklyunbelievable. In fact, it was so successful that they pulled up comps and helpful data that gave them anreceived a winning bid before the open house. The overview on the town and several that surrounded it. Rogers felt comfortable that Dennis took the ap-After attending a few open houses, the Rogerspropriate steps to make sure the buyers were quali-quickly realized that Glen Ridge was out of theirfied and were putting in a competitive offer. As the price range. Dennis says, I was familiar with Veronatransaction progressed, Alex recalls, Dennis cleared and its small-town feel, so I suggested that they lookeverything with us ahead of time. He was very forth-there. It took viewing just two houses for them tocoming about what to expect with walk-throughs find the right fit.and very reassuring to alleviate any fears we had.Alex recalls how he and Katie were initially drawnKatie is relieved that they found their dream house to a house that looked great online. However, Dennisearlier than expected. She says, Moving around theDennis Hepworth, Broker Associate, Keller Williamshelped them see its drawbacks, pointing out problemsholidays is always hectic. But we love the home andMidtown Direct Realty finding home /23'