The Practice That Was Built for People Like You — Because We Were People Like You.
Artfx Financial Planning exists because good financial advice shouldn't require a certain net worth, a tolerance for jargon, or the ability to pretend you're not nervous in a wood-paneled office.
Kirstin Chavez, CFP® — Lead Advisor
Kirstin didn't start in finance. For 25 years, she built an internationally recognized career as a professional classical singer — performing at the highest levels of the field, managing the financial reality that comes with it, and serving as Artist in Residence at the University of Utah.
That career came with an income structure most financial advisors have never had to navigate personally: performance fees that arrived in batches, teaching contracts that varied by semester, royalties, travel expenses, and the persistent question of what to do in the months when work was light. There was no HR department, no employer 401(k) match, no paid leave. She figured it out — and built the systems that let her do meaningful work without financial anxiety running the background.
When she transitioned into financial planning and earned her CFP® designation, she brought all of that with her. The result is an advisory practice that genuinely understands irregular income — not because it's a niche we decided to serve, but because it's a life we've actually lived.
Today, Kirstin works with approximately 250 clients across the country, helping people in their 30s and 40s build retirement plans, navigate self-employment finances, evaluate insurance, and figure out what their money should actually be doing for them right now — not just someday.
What the CFP® Designation Actually Means
Holding a CFP® — Certified Financial Planner™ — isn't a matter of passing a weekend course. It requires completing a comprehensive financial planning education program, passing a rigorous board exam, accumulating thousands of hours of professional experience, and committing to ongoing continuing education. CFP® professionals are also held to a fiduciary standard — meaning Kirstin is legally required to act in your interest, not in the interest of a product commission.
Megan Lederer
Megan Lederer grew up in Lawton, Oklahoma and has called Duncan home since she was 16. Before joining the financial services world, she spent a decade in the medical field — which, it turns out, is excellent training for the kind of careful, people-first work that makes a financial planning practice run well.
She made the move into finance almost three years ago, starting with Morgan Stanley before joining Artfx. She brings the same attentiveness to client services that she brought to healthcare: things get handled, communications get returned, and nothing falls through the cracks.
Outside of work, Megan is the proud mom of Addy, 14, who is currently competing on the Junior PGA Tour. Golf is a serious business in the Lederer household.
Our Affiliation and Oversight
Artfx Financial Planning operates under the FFEC Wealth Advisors affiliation and the Cetera Wealth Services. These relationships provide regulatory oversight, compliance infrastructure, and access to a broader range of planning tools and resources — the structural backing that lets a boutique practice deliver at a high level without cutting corners.
What We Actually Believe About Money
Most financial advisory culture is built around restriction — track every dollar, cut the things you enjoy, sacrifice now so you can live later. We think that's the wrong frame.
Financial planning should help you do more of what matters, not less. That means building a retirement strategy that's realistic for your actual life. It means a spending strategy — not a budget — that accounts for the fact that you are a person with values and preferences, not a variables-and-output equation. It means taking your full picture seriously: income, insurance, taxes, education savings, and the question of what you actually want the next 30 years to look like.
We serve people who feel like traditional financial advisory culture wasn't built for them. People with irregular income, mid-career professionals who are ready to get serious, families figuring out how to save for their kids without derailing their own plans. About 250 of them, currently. No minimum portfolio. No judgment about where you're starting from.
A Few Questions About Who We Are
Who is the financial advisor at Artfx Financial Planning?
Kirstin Chavez, CFP®, is the lead advisor and founder of Artfx Financial Planning. She holds the Certified Financial Planner™ designation and brings 25 years of experience as a professional classical singer — and the financial reality that came with it — to her work with clients.
Is Kirstin Chavez still affiliated with the University of Utah?
Kirstin served as Artist in Residence at the University of Utah during her performing career. Her current focus is full-time financial planning through Artfx. Designer note: confirm current affiliation status with client before launch.
What is a fiduciary, and why does it matter?
A fiduciary is legally required to act in your best interest — not in the interest of earning a commission or meeting a sales target. As a CFP®, Kirstin operates under this standard. It means the advice you get is advice designed to help you, full stop.
Who is Megan Lederer?
Megan Lederer is the client services team member at Artfx Financial Planning. She's based in Oklahoma and handles scheduling, client communications, and day-to-day coordination for the practice.
What makes Artfx different from other financial planning firms in Utah?
A few things: Kirstin's CFP® credential combined with a performing arts career that gave her firsthand experience with irregular income, a practice model built around accessibility rather than minimum account balances, and a tone that doesn't make you feel like you need to dress up for your own finances.