Quick Comparison
| Firm | Credentials | Focus |
|---|---|---|
| <a href="https://www.freedomfromaccounting.com/">FreedomFromAccounting, LLC</a> | Chandler firm founded by Renice Lystra in 2007 and joined by Heather Rodriguez, run by QuickBooks ProAdvisors and pairing 25-plus years of controller and CFO work with payroll and sales tax practice. | Bookkeeping, payroll, sales tax compliance, QuickBooks training, accounting cleanup, and business coaching for aestheticians, pest control, pool service, and IT firms across the Phoenix metro. |
| <a href="https://getsmartqb.com/">Get Smart Accounting, LLC</a> | Chandler practice founded by Sarah Michael in 2013, holding Advanced QuickBooks Online ProAdvisor status, BBB Accredited Business since August 31, 2021, and 15-plus years of corporate plus forensic accounting background. | Monthly bookkeeping, QuickBooks Online training, QBO cleanup and catch-up, tax strategy, sales tax filing, and tech stack advisory for tech, contractor, restaurant, dental, real estate, and service-based small businesses. |
| <a href="https://cranmereaccountingandtax.com/">Cranmere Accounting & Tax Services, LLC</a> | Chandler firm founded by Mark Smith in 2011, holding Enrolled Agent status with the IRS, Advanced Certified QuickBooks ProAdvisor, QuickBooks Enterprise Solutions ProAdvisor, and QuickBooks Point of Sale ProAdvisor designations. | QuickBooks setup and bookkeeping support, accounting records guidance, business and personal tax preparation, and tax planning for owner-managed clients across a wide industry range. |
1. FreedomFromAccounting, LLC
- Address: 1839 E Queen Creek Road, Suite 4, Chandler, AZ 85286
- Phone: (480) 802-5636
- Founder / Owner: Renice Lystra (Founder), joined by Heather Rodriguez
- Operating Since: 2007 (19 years)
- Credentials: QuickBooks ProAdvisor team; Renice Lystra holds 25-plus years of controller, CFO, and CPA-firm financial manager experience; Heather Rodriguez holds 15-plus years of payroll and sales tax specialist experience; Arizona LLC registration (entity L13679645)
- Service area: Chandler, Phoenix, Mesa, Scottsdale, Gilbert, Tempe, Apache Junction, Queen Creek, and Maricopa
- Industries served: Aestheticians and beauty professionals, pest control companies, pool cleaning and maintenance companies, and IT and managed network firms, plus 1099 contractors and entrepreneurs
- Website: freedomfromaccounting.com
Queen Creek Road Office in South Chandler
FreedomFromAccounting works from a 1839 East Queen Creek Road, Suite 4 address inside the 85286 zip in south Chandler, near the Queen Creek and Lindsay Road corridor that ties Chandler to the Gilbert and Queen Creek lines. The Queen Creek Road address and (480) 802-5636 phone match across the firm’s own Contact page, the Yelp Chandler business listing, the Yahoo Local Chandler entry, the ZoomInfo company record, and the city-data Arizona business entity index, which gives the contact data multi-source backing rather than a single self-reported entry.
Founder Track Record From 2007
Renice Lystra started FreedomFromAccounting in 2007 and was joined by Heather Rodriguez per the company’s own About page and the Yelp Chandler profile. The 19-year run under named founder leadership sits past the five-year minimum and the ten-year priority threshold this directory applies and rules out a rollup or absentee-ownership pattern. Lystra brings 25-plus years of company controller, CFO, and CPA-firm financial manager work to the practice, and Rodriguez brings 15-plus years as a payroll and sales taxation specialist, which lets the shop cover both core books and compliance under one roof.
Niche Industry Focus and Phoenix Metro Reach
The firm publishes a narrow industry stack that covers aestheticians and beauty professionals, pest control companies, pool cleaning and maintenance companies, and IT and managed network firms, paired with general 1099 contractor and small business work. That narrow focus matches the practice’s stated approach of “Narrow Scope, Up Quality, Accelerate Speed,” which keeps the practice within sectors where the team has built repeated workflow knowledge. The published service area covers nine Arizona cities including Chandler, Phoenix, Mesa, Scottsdale, Gilbert, Tempe, Apache Junction, Queen Creek, and Maricopa, which lines up with the East Valley and broader Phoenix metro demand profile.
Full Service Stack Plus Hands-On QuickBooks Training
The published service list spans bookkeeping, payroll services, sales tax compliance, accounting backup and cleanup, business coaching, tax planning, and QuickBooks training delivered by QuickBooks ProAdvisors in a hands-on classroom format. That training approach gives Chandler owners a path to learn QuickBooks in person rather than through prerecorded video alone, and the cleanup line lets owners arriving with messy books reset their files before moving to ongoing monthly close work. The combined scope lets East Valley owners hand off the full books-payroll-sales-tax cycle inside one practice.
2. Get Smart Accounting, LLC
- Address: 2294 E Browning Place, Chandler, AZ 85286
- Phone: (480) 867-6342
- Founder / Owner: Sarah E. Michael (Founder and Owner)
- Operating Since: 2013 (13 years)
- Credentials: Advanced QuickBooks Online ProAdvisor (working with QuickBooks since 2001); Bachelor’s in Accounting; PHR (Professional in Human Resources); BBB Accredited Business since August 31, 2021; Gusto Partner Directory listed; Koinly accountant directory listed
- Service area: Chandler, Phoenix, Scottsdale, Gilbert, Mesa, Tempe, Glendale, and remote clients nationwide
- Industries served: 20-plus industries including tech startups, contractors, restaurants, dental practices, real estate agents, gyms, landscapers, plumbers, veterinary clinics, and service-based small businesses
- Website: getsmartqb.com
Browning Place Office in South Chandler
Get Smart Accounting works from a 2294 East Browning Place address inside the 85286 zip in south Chandler, near the Lindsay Road and Pecos Road corridor in the Cooper Commons neighborhood. The Browning Place address and (480) 867-6342 phone match across the firm’s own site at getsmartqb.com, the BBB Chandler profile, the Yelp Chandler business listing, the Gusto Partner Directory entry, and the Koinly accountant directory record, which gives the contact data multi-source backing.
Founder Sarah Michael and 2013 Start
Sarah E. Michael founded Get Smart Accounting in 2013 after 15 years of corporate and forensic accounting work per her LinkedIn profile, the company’s BBB record, and the Yelp Chandler entry. The 13-year run under named founder leadership sits past the five-year minimum and the ten-year priority threshold this directory applies. Michael holds a Bachelor’s in Accounting and a PHR (Professional in Human Resources) credential, and her bio notes she is sitting for the CPA exams, which adds outside study and credential depth past the QuickBooks track.
Advanced QBO ProAdvisor Stack
Sarah Michael holds Advanced QuickBooks Online ProAdvisor status and has worked with QuickBooks since 2001, which puts her QuickBooks track at 25-plus years across the desktop and online product lines. The firm became a BBB Accredited Business on August 31, 2021 and appears in third-party partner directories at Gusto and Koinly, which adds outside review past self-published marketing claims. The combined credential stack gives Chandler owners an Intuit-verified Advanced ProAdvisor on QuickBooks Online with a documented practice history.
Twenty-Plus Industry Reach With Tax Strategy Layer
The published industry stack covers 20-plus sectors including tech startups, contractors, restaurants, dental practices, real estate agents, gyms, landscapers, plumbers, veterinary clinics, and other service-based small businesses, which gives the shop a wide owner-operator reach across the East Valley. The published service list spans monthly reconciled financial statements, QuickBooks Online training in one-on-one sessions, QBO cleanup and catch-up, QBO review and evaluation, financial coaching, sales tax filing, tech stack advisory, third-party QBO integrations, and tax strategy sessions to maximize deductions. That tax strategy layer pairs well with the bookkeeping core for owners who want planning input alongside the monthly close.
3. Cranmere Accounting & Tax Services, LLC
- Address: 1860 W Pelican Drive, Chandler, AZ 85286
- Phone: (480) 363-4808
- Founder / Owner: Mark Smith, EA (Owner)
- Operating Since: 2011 (15 years)
- Credentials: Enrolled Agent (EA) authorized to represent taxpayers before the IRS; Advanced Certified QuickBooks ProAdvisor; Certified QuickBooks Enterprise Solutions ProAdvisor; Certified QuickBooks Point of Sale ProAdvisor; National Society of Accountants member; IRS Annual Filing Season Program participant
- Service area: Chandler and the Phoenix metro
- Industries served: Owner-managed small businesses across a wide industry range, including retail clients on QuickBooks Point of Sale and clients who maintain manual records
- Website: cranmereaccountingandtax.com
Pelican Drive Office in South Chandler
Cranmere Accounting works from a 1860 West Pelican Drive address inside the 85286 zip in south Chandler, in the Cooper and Riggs Road area of the city. The Pelican Drive address and (480) 363-4808 phone match across the practice’s own contact page at cranmereaccountingandtax.com, the Yelp Chandler tax services listing, the Birdeye Chandler reviews entry, the Manta Chandler business profile, and the Yellowbot Chandler listing, which gives the contact data multi-source backing.
Founder Mark Smith and 2011 Start
Mark Smith founded Cranmere Accounting and Tax Services in 2011 per the Manta Chandler profile and the firm’s own About page. The 15-year run under one named owner sits past the five-year minimum and the ten-year priority threshold this directory applies. Smith brings 30-plus years of professional accounting and tax experience, started his career at Ernst & Young in the United Kingdom where he qualified with the UK’s leading accountancy institute, holds a BSc in Mathematics from the University of Southampton, served as Group Financial Controller at a stock-exchange-listed retailer, worked nine years as Tax Manager at an accounting firm, and worked H&R Block tax seasons in 2009 and 2010 before launching the practice.
Stacked QuickBooks ProAdvisor Credentials
Mark Smith holds three layered QuickBooks credentials: Advanced Certified QuickBooks ProAdvisor (a tier above the standard ProAdvisor exam), Certified QuickBooks Enterprise Solutions ProAdvisor (the desktop product line for larger files), and Certified QuickBooks Point of Sale ProAdvisor (the retail register product line). That stacked credential set lets the company support clients across QuickBooks Online, QuickBooks Desktop, QuickBooks Enterprise, and QuickBooks POS rather than a single product. Smith pairs that QuickBooks track with Enrolled Agent status (granted by the IRS, which lets him represent any taxpayer before the IRS) and National Society of Accountants membership.
Bookkeeping Plus Owner-Managed Tax Layer
The published scope covers QuickBooks help and bookkeeping support, accounting records review for clients who keep manual records, business tax preparation, personal tax preparation, and tax planning advice for owner-managed clients. Smith’s published bio notes he managed a portfolio of primarily owner-managed clients covering a wide range of industries during his UK practice years, and that owner-operator focus carries across to the Chandler practice. The combined service list lets East Valley owners pair monthly QuickBooks work with year-end tax preparation and tax representation under one named EA, which covers IRS letters and audit matters that pure bookkeeping firms refer out.
Reference Notes
FreedomFromAccounting LLC address (1839 East Queen Creek Road, Suite 4, Chandler, AZ 85286) and phone (480) 802-5636 cross-checked across the shop’s own Contact and About pages at freedomfromaccounting.com, the Yelp Chandler business profile, the Yahoo Local Chandler entry, the ZoomInfo company record, and the city-data Arizona business entity index under entity ID L13679645. The 2007 founding date and Renice Lystra’s role as Founder sourced from the practice’s About page and confirmed at the Yelp Chandler entry, with Heather Rodriguez listed as the joining principal. The 25-plus year controller and CFO background plus the 15-plus year payroll and sales tax background drawn from the firm’s About page bios.
Get Smart Accounting LLC address (2294 East Browning Place, Chandler, AZ 85286) and phone (480) 867-6342 confirmed across the company’s own pages at getsmartqb.com, the BBB Chandler profile (BBB Accredited Business since August 31, 2021), the Yelp Chandler business listing, the Gusto Partner Directory profile, and the Koinly accountant directory entry. The 2013 founding date and Sarah E. Michael’s role as Founder and Owner sourced from her LinkedIn profile, the BBB Chandler record, and the shop’s site. The Advanced QuickBooks Online ProAdvisor status and the 2001 QuickBooks start date sourced from the practice’s site bio and her LinkedIn entry.
Cranmere Accounting and Tax Services LLC address (1860 West Pelican Drive, Chandler, AZ 85286) and phone (480) 363-4808 confirmed across the firm’s own contact page at cranmereaccountingandtax.com, the Yelp Chandler tax services listing, the Birdeye Chandler reviews record, the Manta Chandler business profile, the Yellowbot Chandler entry, and the Nextdoor Chandler page. The 2011 founding date sourced from the Manta Chandler profile and the company’s About page, and Mark Smith’s role as Owner cross-checked across his LinkedIn profile, the TaxBuzz Chandler tax preparer record, and the shop’s About page. The Enrolled Agent designation, the three QuickBooks ProAdvisor credentials, and the National Society of Accountants membership sourced from the practice’s About page bio. All three firms appear as independent, founder-led practices and not as franchised or rolled-up brands such as Bench, Pilot, QuickBooks Live, BELAY, Bookkeeper360, Bookminders, Supporting Strategies, Bookkeeper.com, or 1-800Accountant.
Selection Methodology
This list applies four filters to the Chandler market. First, the firm has to be independent, family owned, or founder led rather than part of a national rollup or franchise brand. Second, the company must show active QuickBooks credentials or a QuickBooks-centered practice, with that focus visible on its own site or on a third-party directory such as the Intuit Find-a-ProAdvisor portal, the Better Business Bureau, Gusto, or Koinly. Third, the shop has to have been in business for at least five years, with priority given to firms past the ten-year mark. Fourth, the practice has to position itself as a bookkeeping practice rather than a pure CPA tax-prep shop. Public address and phone data also had to match across at least two independent sources, including the firm’s own site plus a Better Business Bureau record, a partner directory entry, a Yelp or Birdeye listing, or another third-party business directory. National rollup brands such as Bench, Pilot, QuickBooks Live, BELAY, Bookkeeper360, Bookminders, Supporting Strategies, Bookkeeper.com, and 1-800Accountant were excluded by design, since this directory targets locally owned shops in the Chandler market. The firms profiled in our companion Phoenix, Tucson, and Mesa guides were also excluded to avoid duplication across Arizona posts.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do these firms serve clients outside Chandler proper?
Yes. FreedomFromAccounting works from a Queen Creek Road office in south Chandler and publishes a service area that covers nine Arizona cities including Phoenix, Mesa, Scottsdale, Gilbert, Tempe, Apache Junction, Queen Creek, and Maricopa, which puts the company across the full East Valley and broader Phoenix metro. Get Smart Accounting works from a Browning Place office in south Chandler and publishes a service area that reaches Phoenix, Scottsdale, Gilbert, Mesa, Tempe, and Glendale, plus remote clients across the United States on QuickBooks Online files. Cranmere Accounting works from a Pelican Drive office in south Chandler and serves clients across the broader Phoenix metro, with QuickBooks files supported on Online, Desktop, Enterprise, and Point of Sale platforms.
Are these firms CPA practices or bookkeeping practices?
All three position themselves as QuickBooks-centered bookkeeping practices rather than as CPA audit firms. FreedomFromAccounting runs as a QuickBooks ProAdvisor bookkeeping, payroll, and sales tax practice under founder Renice Lystra, with Heather Rodriguez covering the payroll and sales tax specialist track. Get Smart Accounting runs as an Advanced QuickBooks Online ProAdvisor bookkeeping practice under founder Sarah Michael, with a tax strategy layer on top of the monthly close. Cranmere Accounting runs as an Enrolled Agent practice with three QuickBooks ProAdvisor credentials under founder Mark Smith, which gives the shop both bookkeeping support and IRS representation rights but stops short of a CPA audit license. Owners who need formal CPA audit or attest work would still need to retain a licensed CPA firm separately.
Do Chandler bookkeeping firms typically offer remote service?
Yes. FreedomFromAccounting supports remote clients across nine Arizona cities from its Queen Creek Road base, with hands-on QuickBooks training delivered in a classroom format for clients who want in-person learning. Get Smart Accounting works on QuickBooks Online cloud files from its Browning Place base and supports remote clients nationwide, with one-on-one QBO training sessions and monthly reconciled statements delivered through cloud workflows. Cranmere Accounting supports clients on QuickBooks Online, QuickBooks Desktop, QuickBooks Enterprise, and QuickBooks Point of Sale from its Pelican Drive base, which lets owners pick a fully remote engagement, an in-person engagement, or a hybrid arrangement on the same QuickBooks file.
How long have these firms been operating?
FreedomFromAccounting has run as a Chandler bookkeeping practice since 2007 (19 years) per the practice’s About page and the Yelp Chandler profile, with Renice Lystra as founder and Heather Rodriguez as the joining principal. Cranmere Accounting and Tax Services has run as a Chandler practice since 2011 (15 years) per the Manta Chandler profile and the firm’s About page, under named owner Mark Smith. Get Smart Accounting has run as a Chandler practice since 2013 (13 years) per Sarah Michael’s LinkedIn profile and the company’s BBB record, and the shop became a BBB Accredited Business on August 31, 2021. Each firm sits past the five-year minimum tenure threshold this directory applies and past the ten-year priority threshold, and each has stayed independent across its full window under named founder or owner control.
Editorial Note
This post was prepared on 2026-05-11 using publicly available web sources, including each firm’s own website, third-party business directories such as Yelp, Birdeye, Manta, Yellowbot, Nextdoor, Gusto, Koinly, ZoomInfo, and Yahoo Local, the Better Business Bureau Chandler profiles, the city-data Arizona business entity index, the TaxBuzz tax preparer directory, and LinkedIn business profiles. Address, phone, ownership, tenure, and credential details reflect those sources at the time of writing. Readers should confirm current details directly with each firm before contracting, since office locations, phone numbers, and ownership can change after publication.