Tennessee's growth-focused CPA firm.
CPAs for growth-oriented businesses · Statewide Tennessee

Accounting built around your business.

RiverRidge works with growth-oriented business owners across Tennessee who want more than a form-filer. Every engagement starts by understanding how you actually operate — your books, your patterns, your goals — and is priced as a flat monthly retainer so you know the number before the work starts.

TNServing the full state
10+Years in practice
FlatMonthly retainer, set up front
Tennessee · (615) 549-6536 Serving growth-oriented businesses statewide
Why RiverRidge

Small firm. Intentionally.

Most CPA firms want to grow. We'd rather stay small and keep doing the work we love well. When a roster gets too large, the work changes — every return stops getting the partner's eye, quarterly calls lose depth, emails take days. So we've drawn a line and we keep it.

i

You're not a number here

With a small roster, AJ and the team know your business, your filing history, and your goals. We don't ask you to repeat context every year — we lead with it.

ii

Responsive by default

Direct communication, not a ticket system. When you email, you hear back from the CPA who knows your file — and if an answer needs research, you'll get an acknowledgment and a timeline.

iii

Proactive, not reactive

Quarterly tax planning calls are baked into every engagement. We flag the move before April, not after.

What "small by design" looks like
A client roster you can keep in your head. A response window you can measure in hours, not weeks. A CPA who calls before the deadline.
50Clients, firm-wide cap — never more
24 hrResponse window, in writing
1 CPAWho knows your books by name
0Account-manager handoffs
What we do

Small business accounting, tax, and payroll — done well.

A focused set of services for growth-oriented Tennessee business owners. Every engagement is scoped to your operation and priced as a flat monthly retainer.

Outsourced Accounting

A complete accounting function without the overhead of a full in-house team. Monthly close, reporting, and the advisory layer that turns numbers into decisions.

  • Monthly close & reconciliation
  • Management reporting
  • Controller-level oversight

Bookkeeping

Clean, current books you can actually run the business from — whether we're setting up from scratch, cleaning up a backlog, or taking over ongoing.

  • QuickBooks Online & Desktop
  • Cleanup & catch-up engagements
  • Monthly ongoing bookkeeping

Payroll

Full-service payroll handled end-to-end. Direct deposit, tax deposits, quarterly and annual filings — and a real person to call when a question lands.

  • Direct-deposit & tax deposits
  • 941/940, W-2, 1099 filings
  • New-hire & garnishment setup

Other Accounting Services

The work that doesn't fit a single label — software selection, controller support, process reviews, lender packages, and special projects scoped to your ask.

  • Accounting system setup & training
  • Lender & investor packages
  • Project-based engagements

Tax Planning & Preparation

Federal and multi-state returns for individuals, partnerships, LLCs, S-corps, and C-corps. Year-round planning so April doesn't become an event.

  • Individual & business returns
  • Quarterly estimated planning
  • Multi-state & entity filings

Tax Problems

IRS or state notice? Back returns, installment agreements, offers-in-compromise, or audit defense. We step in and handle the correspondence from here.

  • Notice response & audit defense
  • Back-return filing
  • Installment & OIC negotiation
AJ Hosenfeld, CPA, founder of RiverRidge CPAs
AJ HosenfeldFounder · CPA
The founder

Why AJ built the firm he couldn't hire.

AJ Hosenfeld spent a decade inside the kinds of firms he'd never hire as a client. The ones where your return sits in a stack, where "your CPA" means the associate two desks over, where the partner you met during onboarding is the partner you never speak to again.

In 2016, he started RiverRidge to run the other way — a firm-wide commitment to staying small, a flat monthly retainer for every client, and a standing promise to call growth-oriented owners before April, not after. Not a growth target, a ceiling. Because the only way to keep the promise of personal service is to never take on more than you can serve well.

"I'd rather know twenty-five businesses well than three hundred by file number. That's the whole thesis."
CPA, State of Tennessee 10+ years in practice Serving Tennessee statewide Growth-oriented small businesses
50Client cap, firm-wide
10+Years in practice
FlatMonthly retainer, not hourly
CPAState of Tennessee
Who hires us

Growth-oriented businesses in Tennessee.

Owner-operated companies across the state that have outgrown DIY bookkeeping and want a CPA who knows the books, not a form-filer. Every engagement starts with a free 30-minute call and a written, flat-fee scope — so you know what you're getting and what it costs before you sign.

How we start

Four steps from first call to first return.

Most new clients are onboarded in under two weeks. Here's what that looks like.

01

Free 30-min call

Talk to AJ. Explain the situation, the goals, the prior-year pain. We'll tell you honestly whether we're a fit.

02

Written proposal

A flat-fee engagement letter for the scope we discussed. You'll know the monthly or annual number before you sign.

03

Secure onboarding

Prior returns, QuickBooks access, and IRS 2848 power-of-attorney all flow through our encrypted portal.

04

Ongoing partnership

Quarterly check-ins, proactive notices, and a CPA who already knows your business every time you call.

What clients tell us

The themes that come up in every renewal.

Responsiveness, clarity, and a CPA who thinks about the business before you do. The scenarios below are illustrative examples of the work we do — not quotes from specific clients.

★★★★★
"They called me before the quarterly deadline asking about my estimated payments. My last CPA didn't even answer the phone the day of the deadline."
Proactive quarterly planningIllustrative · Construction / trades
★★★★★
"Restructured from an LLC to an S-corp in year two and saved five figures in self-employment tax. Modeled before pitched."
Entity-structure savingsIllustrative · Creative agency
★★★★★
"IRS notice landed on a Friday afternoon. A response strategy was in our inbox by Monday morning. You can't put a number on that kind of peace of mind."
Fast notice responseIllustrative · SaaS / tech
Pricing approach

Flat-fee engagements.

We don't publish a rate card because every engagement is scoped to the work it actually takes. What we promise is how we price — a flat fee, set up front, documented in writing.

Where we work

One firm, serving all of Tennessee.

RiverRidge works with clients from Memphis to the Smokies. Meetings are by appointment — most happen by phone, Zoom, or in-person.

TN

Tennessee

Statewide service

Tax, accounting, and advisory for growth-oriented business owners across the state. Secure portal, virtual meetings, and in-person when it makes sense.

Questions

Answers before you book.

The same questions come up on the first call. Here's what we tell people.

Do you ever stop taking new clients?

Yes. We intentionally keep the roster small so every client gets real attention. If we're at capacity, we'll say so on the first call — and we'll happily recommend other Tennessee firms we trust.

How responsive are you?

Emails, calls, and portal messages go to the CPA who knows your file — not a shared inbox or a ticket queue. Tax season is busy, but you'll always hear back from a real person.

Do you work statewide — or only in one part of Tennessee?

Statewide. We work with owner-operated businesses from Memphis to the Smokies. Our secure portal and virtual-meeting setup makes geography mostly irrelevant for ongoing work, and we'll come in person when the engagement calls for it.

Can I just hire you for taxes?

Yes. Plenty of clients use us only for annual tax prep and planning. If you want to add monthly bookkeeping or advisory later, we make it easy — but it's never a prerequisite.

How are fees structured?

Flat fees, not hourly. We quote a monthly or annual number based on a defined scope. That number is set before you sign, and won't change mid-year unless the scope does.

I got an IRS notice. Can you help?

Yes — and don't respond to it yourself. Forward it to us and we'll build a strategy within one business day. Most notices have tight response windows, so the sooner we see it, the better.

What if my books are a mess?

That's normal. Most new clients come to us with books that need a cleanup. We quote the cleanup separately from ongoing work, so you know what you're signing up for on each side.

Are you QuickBooks people or Xero people?

QuickBooks Online is our default, but we work with Xero and a handful of other platforms. We meet you where your books are, not the other way around.

Ready when you are

Thirty minutes with AJ. No pitch.

If we're full, we'll tell you. If we're the right fit, we'll quote a fee and outline the scope on the same call. Either way, it's a useful conversation.

Contact

Let's talk.

The form is the fastest way in — it lands directly in AJ's inbox and he'll be back to you inside one business day. Prefer to talk first? Call the office at (615) 549-6536.

Schedule a consultation

A few details up front helps us come prepared. Nothing is shared outside the firm.

Email

Use the form — it goes directly to AJ
Response inside one business day.

How we respond

Direct to the CPA
No shared inbox, no ticket queue.

Service area

Tennessee statewide
Virtual nationwide