Quick Comparison
| Firm | Credentials | Focus |
|---|---|---|
| Garland Bookkeeping | Gold-tier Certified QuickBooks ProAdvisor; founder is a CPA with more than 30 years of professional experience and 12 years running the local practice. | Garland, Richardson, and Rowlett owners wanting in-person bookkeeping, payroll, and e-commerce ledger work performed locally and never outsourced. |
| Dwain Mees CPA, P.C. | Certified QuickBooks ProAdvisor, Certified Professional Bookkeeper, and licensed Texas CPA; firm established in 2006 with 22-plus years of accounting experience. | Garland small business owners wanting bookkeeping, accounting software setup, payroll, and sales tax run under one credentialed owner with 20-plus years of practice. |
| Peggy's Bookkeeping & Tax Service | Enrolled Agent firm; family-owned since 1977; current managing partner Sharon Moore brings 30-plus years of bookkeeping and tax experience. | Mesquite, Sunnyvale, Balch Springs, and eastern Garland-area small businesses and individuals wanting a multi-generation family practice for ongoing bookkeeping and tax work. |
1. Garland Bookkeeping
- Address: 629 Pebblecreek Drive, Garland, TX 75040
- Phone: (214) 537-1601
- Founder / Owner: Joe E. Walters, CPA
- Operating Since: 2014 (12 years)
- Credentials: Gold-tier Certified Intuit QuickBooks ProAdvisor; Texas-licensed CPA; more than 30 years of professional accounting experience
- Service area: Garland, Richardson, and Rowlett, with all bookkeeping work kept locally and never outsourced
- Industries served: E-commerce sellers across Amazon, eBay, TikTok Shop, Shopify, and Etsy, plus general small business clients
- Website: garlandbookkeeping.com
Gold-Tier ProAdvisor With CPA Backing
Most local QuickBooks users encounter standard ProAdvisor certifications. Joe Walters holds Gold tier within the Intuit ProAdvisor program, an earned status reflecting active client volume on QuickBooks Online and ongoing certification renewals. He pairs that with a Texas CPA license and three decades of corporate accounting before opening the Garland practice in 2014, so owners get a bookkeeper who reads financial statements at CPA depth rather than a software-only operator.
House Calls and Face-to-Face Meetings
The firm publishes accounting house calls and in-person meetings as a core part of the engagement model rather than a remote-only delivery. Owners in Garland, Richardson, and Rowlett can sit with the founder, walk through their books on shared screens, and discuss month-end results without driving downtown. That visit-based cadence sets the practice apart from national rollups that route every interaction through a chat window or shared email queue.
E-Commerce Ledger Specialty
Beyond standard small business work, Garland Bookkeeping publishes explicit e-commerce coverage for Amazon Seller Central, eBay, TikTok Shop, Shopify, and Etsy. E-commerce books require deposit-clearing accounts, marketplace-fee allocations, sales-tax-by-state mapping, and inventory cost tracking that differ from a brick-and-mortar service ledger. Sellers running multi-channel storefronts get a bookkeeper familiar with each platform’s payout cadence rather than one generalizing from a Main Street retail file.
Locally Owned, Never Outsourced
The practice publicly states that all bookkeeping work stays in Garland and is never offshored, which keeps the engagement letter tied to one named CPA owner rather than a remote pool. Pricing scales with transaction volume and complexity, and the engagement covers reconciliations, ledger analysis, payroll setup through Paychex, ADP, Gusto, QB Payroll, or Payroll Relief, plus Texas sales tax and franchise tax preparation.
2. Dwain Mees CPA, P.C.
- Address: 1919 South Shiloh Road, Suite 600 LB 15, Garland, TX 75042
- Phone: (972) 840-2000
- Founder / Owner: Dwain Mees, CPA
- Operating Since: 2006 (20 years)
- Credentials: Certified Public Accountant (Texas); Certified Professional Bookkeeper; Certified QuickBooks ProAdvisor; 22-plus years of accounting, tax, and management experience
- Service area: Garland and the wider eastern Dallas County market
- Industries served: Small business clients across mixed sectors plus individual filers
- Website: Not publicly listed (firm reachable by phone; directory listings on BBB and Bizapedia)
Triple-Credentialed Owner
Few Garland practices stack the Certified Public Accountant license, Certified Professional Bookkeeper designation, and Certified QuickBooks ProAdvisor credential under one named owner. Dwain Mees holds all three. The CPB credential matters for owners who specifically want a bookkeeper rather than a generic CPA office, and the QuickBooks ProAdvisor cert confirms current platform proficiency on the dominant small business ledger.
Two Decades Under One Owner
The firm was incorporated in Texas in 2006 and has run continuously under Dwain Mees ever since. That 20-year arc clears the five-year minimum used elsewhere in this directory by a wide margin and signals a stable engagement letter rather than a rotating ownership history. Clients calling in 2026 reach the same principal who founded the shop in 2006.
Bookkeeping First, Tax Second
The CPA credential supports bookkeeping as the practice’s primary service alongside accounting software implementation, small business consulting, payroll, and tax compliance. Owners hiring the practice get monthly ledger work with credentialed CPA-level oversight, with year-end tax filing flowing from the same clean books. That integrated mix fits small business owners who want a single relationship spanning month-end close and annual filing.
Shiloh Road Office in 75042 Garland
The practice operates from 1919 South Shiloh Road in the 75042 ZIP, a Garland address rather than a satellite of a Dallas headquarters. Owners can drop documents in person, meet with the principal, and pick up reports without crossing the metroplex. That neighborhood presence pairs with QuickBooks training engagements for owners who want to keep more work in-house with periodic CPA-level review.
3. Peggy’s Bookkeeping & Tax Service
- Address: 721 Gross Road, Mesquite, TX 75149
- Phone: (972) 285-1030
- Founder / Owner: Founded by Peggy Moore in 1977; currently led by Sharon Moore (managing partner), Anita Molidina (managing partner), and Amin Molidina (president)
- Operating Since: 1977 (49 years; second-generation family firm)
- Credentials: Enrolled Agent firm; managing partner Sharon Moore brings 30-plus years of bookkeeping and tax experience; IRS Acceptance Agent
- Service area: Mesquite, Sunnyvale, Balch Springs, and eastern Garland-area businesses and individuals
- Industries served: Small business owners, self-employed professionals, and individual filers across mixed sectors
- Website: peggys-tax.com and mesquiteaccountingprofessional.com
Family-Owned Since the Carter Administration
Peggy Moore founded the practice in 1977 and ran it until her death in 1990, when her daughter Sharon Moore took over and has led the firm ever since. That 49-year unbroken family arc places Peggy’s well beyond any minimum tenure threshold and gives clients a multi-generation engagement history almost unheard of among independent bookkeepers in the eastern Dallas County corridor. The Mesquite local press has profiled Sharon as a longtime resident carrying on the family business.
Three-Partner Succession Plan
In 2011, Anita Molidina joined the company intending to partner with Sharon, and that partnership formalized in 2015. Amin Molidina joined the practice in 2016 and now operates as president alongside the two managing partners. That layered succession means clients are not relying on a single owner whose retirement could end the engagement, an underrated risk with founder-led shops in their fifth decade.
Enrolled Agent Firm With Bookkeeping Lead
Peggy’s runs as an Enrolled Agent practice, the federal credential that authorizes direct IRS representation across all 50 states. Bookkeeping sits as a co-equal service alongside tax preparation, payroll, sales tax, audit support, tax resolution, and notary work, rather than a side service to a tax shop. Owners wanting both monthly books and integrated federal tax representation under one roof get a credentialed practice with formal IRS standing.
Year-Round Mesquite Hub
The Gross Road office runs year-round with evening and weekend appointments by request, a wider window than most independent bookkeepers keep. The firm publishes a free initial consultation and a 20-percent discount for seniors and first-time clients, which lowers the friction of switching from a national rollup or a strictly remote provider. Bookkeeping clients pulled from Sunnyvale, Balch Springs, and the eastern edge of Garland round out the Mesquite-anchored client base.
Reference Notes
Garland sits in northeastern Dallas County and ranks among the larger municipalities in the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex with a population of roughly 246,000. The eastern Dallas County corridor that this directory covers stretches from Garland through Mesquite, Rowlett, Sunnyvale, and Balch Springs, an industrial and residential band anchored by manufacturing, distribution, retail, healthcare, automotive trades, and a deep small business layer of restaurants, service shops, and contractors. Garland itself hosts a long-standing manufacturing base alongside the Firewheel and Lake Ray Hubbard commercial districts, while Mesquite has historically anchored the rodeo and entertainment economy along with its Town East retail corridor.
Texas has no state income tax, but eastern Dallas County bookkeepers still handle the Texas franchise tax administered by the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts, state and local sales and use tax across Dallas County and the cities of Garland, Mesquite, and Rowlett, and unemployment tax through the Texas Workforce Commission. Federal payroll filings such as Form 941, Form 940, and year-end W-2 and 1099 issuance layer on top. Bookkeepers in Garland generally do not prepare federal income tax returns themselves unless they hold the Enrolled Agent or CPA credential, but their monthly ledger work flows directly into the Texas franchise tax public information report and the year-end packages used for federal filings.
The three firms profiled here are independent and owner-led, hold active QuickBooks ProAdvisor, Certified Bookkeeper, Enrolled Agent, or CPA credentials, and serve Garland and the surrounding eastern Dallas County small business community under a named principal. National rollups and venture-backed bookkeeping platforms were excluded regardless of platform coverage, and firms profiled in the Dallas, Fort Worth, Arlington, and Plano directories were not duplicated so that Garland, Mesquite, and Rowlett are represented on their own.
Selection Methodology
Firms were evaluated against four criteria. First, the shop must be independent, family-owned, or founder-led, with the named principal still active in client work. Second, the practice must hold current QuickBooks ProAdvisor, Certified Professional Bookkeeper, Enrolled Agent, or equivalent credentialing, verified against the firm’s own credential disclosure and supporting public listings. Third, the company must show a minimum of five years of continuous operation under current ownership; two of the three firms profiled clear two decades of either firm history or owner experience, and one is a 49-year multi-generation practice. Fourth, a verifiable physical address in Garland, Mesquite, or Rowlett, plus a Better Business Bureau listing, Chamber of Commerce membership, or comparable public footprint, was treated as a positive marker.
National rollups and platform players were excluded by name, including Bench, Pilot, QuickBooks Live, BELAY, Bookkeeper360, Bookminders, Supporting Strategies, Bookkeeper.com, and 1-800Accountant. Pure CPA firms whose primary offering is income tax preparation rather than ongoing bookkeeping were also excluded, even when those firms list ProAdvisor status, because the engagement model and pricing structure differ from a dedicated bookkeeping practice. Firms profiled in the Dallas, Fort Worth, Arlington, and Plano directories were also excluded so that Garland, Mesquite, Rowlett, and the eastern Dallas County market are represented under separate listings.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I verify a Garland bookkeeper’s credentials?
Search the Intuit Find-a-ProAdvisor directory at proadvisor.intuit.com using the bookkeeper’s name or city to confirm active QuickBooks ProAdvisor certification and the specific certifications held. Cross-check the Better Business Bureau profile for accreditation status, complaint history, and years in business, and look at the Garland Chamber of Commerce, Mesquite Chamber of Commerce, or Rowlett Area Chamber of Commerce member directories for active local membership. For Texas business registration, look up the shop name through the Texas Comptroller’s Taxable Entity Search and the Texas Secretary of State’s SOSDirect system to confirm the entity is active. For Enrolled Agent firms, verify status through the IRS Office of Enrollment, and for CPA firms verify through the Texas State Board of Public Accountancy.
What credentials should a Garland bookkeeper hold?
At a minimum, a working Garland bookkeeper should hold current QuickBooks ProAdvisor certification, since QuickBooks dominates the small business market across North Texas. Stronger bookkeepers also carry the AIPB Certified Bookkeeper designation or the NACPB Certified Public Bookkeeper credential, both of which require a national exam and continuing education. For owners wanting integrated federal tax representation alongside the ledger work, the Enrolled Agent credential issued by the IRS or a Texas CPA license adds significant value. Texas does not license bookkeepers at the state level, so credentialing is the primary signal owners can rely on for professional verification.
How can I tell if a Garland bookkeeper is independent versus a national rollup?
Check the website footer for a single physical Garland, Mesquite, or Rowlett address rather than a generic national headquarters or a list of dozens of city-named landing pages. Confirm that the founder or named owner is reachable by phone and listed on the ProAdvisor directory under the local firm name. Look for community signals such as Garland Chamber of Commerce membership, Mesquite-area Better Business Bureau accreditation, or local press coverage of the founder. National rollups typically route phone calls through a central queue, assign clients to whichever remote bookkeeper is available that day, and do not name a single local owner on engagement letters.
When should a Garland business hire a bookkeeper versus a CPA?
Hire a bookkeeper for ongoing transaction recording, bank and credit card reconciliations, accounts payable and receivable, payroll processing, sales tax filings, and monthly financial statement preparation. Hire a CPA for federal income tax return preparation, complex Texas franchise tax filings, IRS audit representation, entity structuring, and year-end tax planning. Most small Garland businesses need both: a bookkeeper running the books month to month, and a CPA pulling those clean books into annual filings and strategic tax work. Two of the three firms profiled here combine the credentials inside one engagement, which simplifies the handoff but does not change the underlying division of work.
Editorial Note
This directory was researched and published on 11 May 2026. Firm details, including address, phone, ownership, year founded or owner experience, and credentials, were verified against firm websites, the Intuit Find-a-ProAdvisor directory, the Texas Comptroller and Texas Secretary of State business records, the IRS Enrolled Agent listing, local press archives, and BBB and chamber records at the time of writing. Operating details can change. Confirm current address, phone, and credential status with each firm directly before engagement.