Quick Comparison
| Firm | Credentials | Focus |
|---|---|---|
| <a href="http://www.sierrabookkeeping.com/">Sierra Bookkeeping & Tax Service</a> | Family-owned Sacramento practice started in 2001 by Joannie and James Utley, with Advanced QuickBooks ProAdvisor certification and an IRS Enrolled Agent on staff. | Bookkeeping, payroll, sales and use tax, income tax planning and preparation, IRS resolution, and CFO services for boutique food, beverage, restaurant, retail, and wholesale clients. |
| <a href="https://dbusinesssolutions.com/">Diversified Business Solutions, Inc.</a> | Independent Sacramento firm founded in 2001 by April Scott, an Advanced Certified QuickBooks ProAdvisor leading a small team with a California Secretary of State filings specialty. | QuickBooks Online bookkeeping, CFO services, payroll coordination, and California entity formation and filing work for service-based small and mid-sized businesses. |
| <a href="https://busybeeadvisors.com/">Busy Bee Advisors</a> | Family-owned Sacramento bookkeeping, accounting, and tax practice founded in 2017 by Melissa Broughton with co-owner Eric Broughton, holding Certified QuickBooks ProAdvisor and Certified California Tax Partner status. | Monthly and quarterly bookkeeping, QuickBooks consulting and cleanup, payroll support, tax preparation and strategy, and entity formation for small business owners and real estate professionals. |
1. Sierra Bookkeeping & Tax Service
- Address: 5777 Madison Avenue, Suite 615, Sacramento, CA 95841
- Phone: (916) 349-7610
- Founder / Owner: Joannie Utley and James Utley (Owners)
- Operating Since: 2001 (25 years)
- Credentials: Advanced QuickBooks ProAdvisor Certification with all available QuickBooks ProAdvisor product certifications; James Utley is an IRS Enrolled Agent qualified to represent clients before the IRS; over 30 years of combined accounting and bookkeeping experience between the two owners
- Service area: Sacramento, Arden Arcade, Carmichael, and the wider Sacramento County region, with remote support for clients across Northern California
- Industries served: Craft food, wine, beer, restaurants, retail, and wholesale boutique businesses, plus general small business clients
- Website: sierrabookkeeping.com
Madison Avenue Arden Arcade Office
Sierra Bookkeeping & Tax Service works from a 5777 Madison Avenue suite in the Arden Arcade area of Sacramento County, in the 95841 zip code. The firm has held that Madison Avenue address across the company’s own About page, the Better Business Bureau profile, the Yelp business listing, and the practice’s Nextdoor business page. Joannie Utley and James Utley are named as the husband-and-wife ownership team across the firm’s About page and the BBB profile.
Two Decade Family Owner Track Record
Joannie and James Utley started Sierra Bookkeeping & Tax Service on January 1, 2001, and have run the practice as a family-owned shop continuously since then, with the BBB profile confirming the same start date. The pair report over 30 years of combined accounting and bookkeeping experience, and the company has now passed the 25-year mark under unchanged ownership. That window under one ownership team is uncommon in the Sacramento bookkeeping market and points to a stable, locally rooted practice.
Advanced QuickBooks ProAdvisor Stack
James Utley holds the Advanced QuickBooks ProAdvisor Certification along with all available QuickBooks ProAdvisor product certifications, per the shop’s own QuickBooks accounting services page. The team supports both QuickBooks Online and QuickBooks Desktop files, with online access available for client books, and the published service catalog includes accounting software implementation alongside ongoing bookkeeping. James Utley also works as an IRS Enrolled Agent, which lets the practice handle bookkeeping, tax preparation, and IRS issue resolution under one practice.
Boutique Food and Beverage Niche
The published industry mix leans on boutique food, wine, beer, restaurant, retail, and wholesale clients per the firm’s own About page. The service catalog covers bookkeeping, payroll, sales and use tax return preparation, mixed beverage tax return preparation, income tax planning, IRS issue resolution, and a CFO service track that includes budgeting and forecasting, performance reporting, profitability analysis, cash flow and balance sheet analysis, business valuation, business plan development, financing advisory, banking relationships, and M&A services. That stack lets a boutique food or beverage owner keep books, payroll, tax filings, and quarterly planning work with one Sacramento practice.
2. Diversified Business Solutions, Inc.
- Address: 1900 Point West Way, Suite 274, Sacramento, CA 95815
- Phone: (916) 480-1225
- Founder / Owner: April Scott (President and CEO)
- Operating Since: 2001 (25 years)
- Credentials: April Scott is an Advanced Certified QuickBooks ProAdvisor; Nicole Crownover is a Certified QuickBooks ProAdvisor and California Secretary of State Specialist; the company appears as a featured QuickBooks Enterprise partner in an Intuit case study
- Service area: Sacramento headquarters near the Point West corridor with remote support for clients across California and the wider United States
- Industries served: Service-based small and mid-sized businesses including medical practices, dental practices, law firms, consultants, and professional services
- Website: dbusinesssolutions.com
Point West Way Sacramento Office
Diversified Business Solutions works from a 1900 Point West Way office in Suite 274, near the California State Capitol, in the 95815 zip code. The firm has listed that Point West Way address across the company’s own contact page, the Yelp business listing, the Better Business Bureau profile, and the shop’s LinkedIn company page. April Scott appears as the President and CEO across the practice’s own About page, her LinkedIn profile under the name April Scott-Magante, and an Intuit QuickBooks case study covering a Diversified Business Solutions client engagement.
Founder Led Since 2001
April Scott founded Diversified Business Solutions in 2001 and has run the practice as President and CEO continuously since then, per the firm’s About page and her LinkedIn profile. The firm now sits 25 years past its founding date, well above the five-year minimum tenure threshold this directory applies. That long ownership window under one named founder, paired with a small team and a clear California focus, marks the company as a locally rooted independent practice rather than a national rollup brand.
Advanced Certified QuickBooks ProAdvisor Practice
April Scott holds Advanced Certified QuickBooks ProAdvisor status, the top tier of the Intuit ProAdvisor program, and her team uses QuickBooks Online as the primary platform for client books. The firm appears in an Intuit QuickBooks news feature describing how Diversified Business Solutions helped a client unify complex operations under QuickBooks Enterprise, which highlights the team’s depth on the full QuickBooks product line. Bookkeeping services run on a monthly cadence with reconciliation, financial reporting, and ongoing QuickBooks support included.
California Secretary of State Filing Specialty
The firm pairs QuickBooks bookkeeping with a strong California Secretary of State filings practice through a dedicated sister brand at secretaryofstatefiling.com. The published filings catalog covers California corporation formations for domestic and foreign entities, LLC formations and registrations, Certificates of Good Standing, California business records, apostille and certification services, and same-day Secretary of State filings. That combination lets a California service business form the entity, register with the state, and start bookkeeping on QuickBooks Online with one provider rather than separate vendors.
3. Busy Bee Advisors
- Address: 333 University Avenue, Suite 200, Sacramento, CA 95825
- Phone: (916) 400-3500
- Founder / Owner: Melissa Broughton (Founder and Co-Owner) with Eric Broughton (Co-Owner and Tax Department Lead)
- Operating Since: 2017 (9 years)
- Credentials: Certified QuickBooks ProAdvisors; Certified California Tax Partners; Melissa Broughton brings over 20 years of corporate accounting and auditing background; the shop has been featured in the Step By Step Business publication
- Service area: Sacramento headquarters serving Auburn, Citrus Heights, Davis, Dixon, El Dorado Hills, Elk Grove, Folsom, Roseville, and the wider Sacramento metro, with remote coverage nationwide
- Industries served: Solopreneurs, small business owners across multiple sectors, and real estate professionals as a published specialty vertical
- Website: busybeeadvisors.com
University Avenue East Sacramento Office
Busy Bee Advisors holds a 333 University Avenue office in Suite 200 just outside East Sacramento, in the 95825 zip code. The firm has listed that University Avenue address across its own homepage, the Yelp business listing, the Better Business Bureau profile, and the ProMatcher business profile. Melissa Broughton appears as the founder across the practice’s Meet the Team page, the RealFreedom podcast profile, and an interview write-up on the firm’s own blog covering the Step By Step Business feature.
Husband and Wife Founder Team
Melissa Broughton founded Busy Bee Advisors on October 19, 2017 after close to 20 years in corporate accounting, and the practice was formally incorporated on July 31, 2019. Eric Broughton, a tax professional and Northern California native, joined the company in 2020 as Tax Department Lead and Co-Owner. The pair has grown the practice from solo founder to a multi-person team of bookkeepers, tax advisors, and support staff, with the husband-and-wife structure visible across the company’s About page and the RealFreedom podcast interview covering their real estate tax work.
Certified QuickBooks ProAdvisor and Tax Partner Stack
The firm holds Certified QuickBooks ProAdvisor status and Certified California Tax Partner status, and the team uses QuickBooks Online as the core platform for client books. Published QuickBooks services include consulting, cleanup, setup, and ongoing advisory work, and the practice pairs monthly or quarterly bookkeeping with payroll support, accounts payable and receivable processing, and cash flow projection work. That dual QuickBooks and tax credential stack lets the shop hold books, payroll, and California tax filings under one practice.
Real Estate Professional Specialty
Eric and Melissa Broughton hold a published specialty in real estate professional tax strategy, with the practice reporting an average client tax savings of $30,000 per year and a dedicated podcast called The Real Buzz covering tax topics for real estate investors. The published service catalog covers bookkeeping, tax preparation, tax reduction strategy, tax resolution, QuickBooks consulting, small business accounting and outsourcing, business incorporation, entity formation, and sales and use tax preparation. That mix fits solo real estate agents, investor LLCs, and small property management shops who want bookkeeping plus tax strategy under one roof.
Reference Notes
Sierra Bookkeeping & Tax Service address (5777 Madison Avenue, Suite 615, Sacramento, CA 95841) and phone (916) 349-7610 cross-checked across the firm’s own About page, the Better Business Bureau Sacramento profile, the Yelp business listing for Sierra Bookkeeping and Tax Service, and the company’s Nextdoor business page. The 2001 founding date and the Joannie Utley and James Utley ownership team sourced from the shop’s About page and the BBB profile, which lists the same January 1, 2001 start date. Advanced QuickBooks ProAdvisor certification and James Utley’s IRS Enrolled Agent credential sourced from the practice’s QuickBooks accounting services page.
Diversified Business Solutions address (1900 Point West Way, Suite 274, Sacramento, CA 95815) and phone (916) 480-1225 confirmed across the firm’s own homepage, the Yelp business listing, the Better Business Bureau Sacramento profile, the company’s LinkedIn company page, and the ZoomInfo company record. The 2001 founding year and April Scott as President and CEO sourced from the shop’s About page, April Scott-Magante’s LinkedIn profile, and an Intuit QuickBooks case study covering Diversified Business Solutions and a client deployment of QuickBooks Enterprise. Advanced Certified QuickBooks ProAdvisor status sourced from the practice’s homepage and April Scott’s LinkedIn headline.
Busy Bee Advisors address (333 University Avenue, Suite 200, Sacramento, CA 95825) and phone (916) 400-3500 cross-checked across the firm’s own homepage and Locations page, the Yelp business listing, the Better Business Bureau Sacramento profile, the Facebook business page, and the ProMatcher profile. The October 19, 2017 start date and the July 31, 2019 incorporation date sourced from the company’s About content and Eric and Melissa Broughton’s bio pages, with Eric Broughton’s 2020 entry as Co-Owner confirmed on the Meet the Team page and the RealFreedom podcast profile. Certified QuickBooks ProAdvisor and Certified California Tax Partner status sourced from the shop’s homepage and services pages.
All three firms appear as independent, founder-led, or family-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 Sacramento market. First, the practice has to be independent, family owned, or founder led rather than part of a national rollup or franchise brand. Second, the firm must show active QuickBooks credentials or a QuickBooks-centered practice, with that focus visible on its own site or on a third-party directory. Third, the company has to have been in business for at least five years, with priority given to firms past the ten-year mark. Fourth, the shop 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 practice’s own site plus a Better Business Bureau record, a Yelp business profile, a LinkedIn company page, or another third-party 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 Sacramento market.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do these firms serve clients outside Sacramento proper?
Yes. Sierra Bookkeeping & Tax Service works from a Madison Avenue office in the Arden Arcade area of Sacramento County and serves boutique small business clients across Sacramento, Carmichael, Citrus Heights, and the wider region, with remote support for clients across Northern California. Diversified Business Solutions works from a Point West Way office near the California State Capitol and supports California service businesses statewide and clients across the wider United States through a remote QuickBooks Online workflow. Busy Bee Advisors holds a University Avenue office just outside East Sacramento and lists published service coverage for Auburn, Citrus Heights, Davis, Dixon, El Dorado Hills, Elk Grove, Folsom, Roseville, and other Northern California cities, plus nationwide remote coverage.
Are these firms CPA practices or bookkeeping practices?
All three position themselves as QuickBooks-centered bookkeeping practices rather than as CPA audit firms. Sierra Bookkeeping & Tax Service runs as an Advanced QuickBooks ProAdvisor practice with bookkeeping, payroll, and IRS-facing tax representation through James Utley’s Enrolled Agent status. Diversified Business Solutions runs as an Advanced Certified QuickBooks ProAdvisor practice with bookkeeping, CFO support, and California Secretary of State filings under a sister brand. Busy Bee Advisors runs as a Certified QuickBooks ProAdvisor and Certified California Tax Partner practice covering bookkeeping, payroll, tax preparation, tax strategy, and entity formation. Owners who need formal CPA audit or attest work would still need to retain a licensed CPA firm separately.
Do Sacramento bookkeeping firms typically offer remote service?
Yes. Busy Bee Advisors explicitly offers remote bookkeeping and tax services to clients nationwide alongside its Sacramento office, with a published Locations page covering eight Northern California cities plus US-wide remote coverage. Diversified Business Solutions works primarily on QuickBooks Online files and supports a national client base from the Point West Way headquarters through a remote workflow. Sierra Bookkeeping & Tax Service keeps a stronger Sacramento County focus from its Madison Avenue office but supports remote QuickBooks engagements alongside on-site work, with QuickBooks Online access available for client books.
How long have these firms been operating?
Sierra Bookkeeping & Tax Service was founded in 2001 (25 years). Diversified Business Solutions was founded in 2001 (25 years). Busy Bee Advisors was founded in 2017 (9 years). Each firm sits well past the five-year minimum tenure threshold this directory applies, 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, the Better Business Bureau, ProMatcher, ZoomInfo, the Intuit QuickBooks news feed, and LinkedIn business and personal 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.