About Lighthammer Bookkeeping, Inc.

Experienced Financial Guidance for Better Business Decisions

Lighthammer Bookkeeping, Inc. provides business owners with more than accurate books. Led by Jim, a Certified Public Accountant with more than 20 years of CFO and controller experience, the firm delivers CPA-led bookkeeping and practical financial guidance shaped by decades of real-world leadership.

Jim helps clients understand decisions involving LLCs, partnerships, S corporations, and sole proprietorships, including how each structure may affect payroll, owner salary requirements, tax elections, and estimated tax consequences. He also coordinates bookkeeping, payroll, and tax responsibilities so these closely connected areas are handled consistently rather than treated as separate issues.

Based in Madeira, Ohio, Lighthammer Bookkeeping, Inc. serves clients throughout Greater Cincinnati—including Hamilton, Butler, and Warren counties—as well as businesses nationwide through secure virtual services.

We work with:

  • Real estate investors and landlords

  • Property-management companies

  • Realtors and house flippers

  • Contractors and real estate-related trades

  • Growing service-based businesses

  • Business owners comparing entity and tax options

When you work with Lighthammer Bookkeeping, Inc., you receive the accessibility of a small firm backed by the experience of a seasoned CPA, CFO, and controller.

Meet Jim

Jim is a CPA, QuickBooks Online Advanced ProAdvisor, and experienced financial leader who has spent more than two decades helping businesses strengthen their financial operations and make informed decisions.

Before focusing on Lighthammer Bookkeeping, Inc., Jim served in CFO and controller roles, including leadership positions with companies in the real estate investment industry. That experience taught him how bookkeeping, cash flow, payroll, taxes, business structure, and long-term planning work together—and how costly it can be when they are handled separately.

Today, Jim works directly with clients, applying that executive-level perspective to everyday financial questions. He helps business owners compare LLC, partnership, S corporation, and sole-proprietor options; understand owner salary and payroll requirements; evaluate tax elections and estimated tax consequences; and establish processes that keep their bookkeeping, payroll, and tax responsibilities aligned.

Workcation

“"I love Lighthammer Bookkeeping, Inc.! I can't say enough about Jim. Lighthammer has taken us from the dark ages into the future. We had tried everything, inhouse bookkeeping and 2 outsourced bookkeepers in the last 4 years. I was so naive, thinking a bookkeeper is a bookkeeper, folks this is not the case. Jim / Lighthammer is bookkeeping on steroids! It's like I have my own CFO! He has automated our credit cards, our payroll, payroll taxes, our PTO time, and quarterly taxes. Oh, and he's reasonably priced! Globe Insurance has been around since 1926, I'm the third owner and I sleep well at night knowing I can grow my business and not have to worry about the tax/payroll side! Jim is the "Whiz-bang" enough said!" ”

Rob Wilkerson
Globe Insurance Agency

A More Practical Way to Serve Clients

After years in demanding financial leadership roles and spending too much time commuting, Jim wanted to build a firm that allowed him to work more closely and efficiently with clients. Lighthammer Bookkeeping, Inc. was created to provide responsive, CPA-led financial services without unnecessary layers or inconvenient meetings.

Local Expertise, Nationwide Support

Lighthammer Bookkeeping, Inc. combines personal service with modern cloud-based accounting technology. Clients throughout Greater Cincinnati can work with a local CPA who understands the regional business and real estate environment, while businesses across the country can receive the same guidance through secure virtual collaboration.

This flexible approach helps real estate investors, contractors, property managers, and growing businesses keep their financial information organized, coordinate bookkeeping and payroll responsibilities, and receive timely guidance about tax and business decisions—wherever they are located.

Practical Advice Backed by Experience

As a QuickBooks Online Advanced ProAdvisor, Jim helps clients establish reliable bookkeeping systems, improve workflows, and get more useful information from QuickBooks Online. His CPA credentials and more than 20 years of CFO and controller experience allow him to look beyond individual transactions and consider how business structure, payroll, tax elections, and estimated taxes affect the broader financial picture.

The firm’s approach is straightforward: maintain accurate financial information, explain the available options clearly, and help clients understand the likely consequences of each decision. Whether you need ongoing bookkeeping, payroll support, tax preparation, entity guidance, or business consulting, you receive coordinated advice grounded in practical experience.

Let's Get Started
Gain a clearer understanding of your finances and experienced guidance for the decisions affecting your business. Contact Lighthammer Bookkeeping, Inc. to learn how Jim can coordinate your bookkeeping, payroll, tax, and advisory needs throughout Greater Cincinnati or nationwide.