Kati M. LaBuda

CFP®, CDFA®, CPFA
Vice President, Wealth Management

Kati is a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER® professional, and partner/owner with Designing Wealth Management of Raymond James.  She received both a Bachelor of Arts and a Master of Business Administration from DeSales University. She also holds the following professional accreditations: Series 7 (General Securities Representative) and Series 66 (Uniform State Law) licenses, Certified Divorce Financial Analyst designation, Certified Plan Fiduciary Advisor designation as well as her life, health, and accident insurance license.

Kati has worked for Raymond James for 18 years.  Prior she worked in project management.

Kati works closely with Kristie, and Seth, in assisting their clients in reaching their long-term goals through customized financial solutions for life-cycle planning. She is committed to understanding and addressing the unique needs of each of their clients.

Kati currently volunteers for the Southern Lehigh Chamber board for the Greater Lehigh Valley Chamber of Commerce, where she adds input for monthly local chamber events and is the current Chair. She is also the President of the Board for the Monocacy Farm Project.  She is actively involved with her alma mater, where she serves on the DeSales University President’s Advisory Council. Kati is also a member of the Allentown Rotary Club.

Originally from Bethlehem, Kati now resides in Coopersburg, where she enjoys exercising, practicing yoga, spending time with Shaun, Madison and Kirsten, and playing with their two dogs; Giroud and Saka.

Text Kati: 484-669-7100

“Kati LaBuda was named to the 2025 edition of the Forbes list of Top Women Wealth Advisors Best-in-State†.”


Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards Center for Financial Planning, Inc. owns and licenses the certification marks CFP®, Certified Financial Planner®, and CFP® (with plaque design) in the United States to Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards, Inc., which authorizes individuals who successfully complete the organization's initial and ongoing certification requirements to use the certification marks.

Raymond James is not affiliated with the above organizations and/or charitable causes.

† The Forbes ranking of Top Women Wealth Advisors Best-In-State, developed by SHOOK Research, is based on an algorithm of qualitative and quantitative data, rating thousands of wealth advisors with a minimum of seven years of experience and weighing factors like revenue trends, assets under management, compliance records, industry experience and best practices learned through telephone and in-person interviews. Portfolio performance is not a criteria due to varying client objectives and lack of audited data. This ranking is based upon the period from 9/30/23 to 9/30/24 and was released on 02/11/2025. Research Summary (as of February 2025): 48,220 nominations were received and 2,436 women won. This ranking is not indicative of an advisor's future performance, is not an endorsement, and may not be representative of individual clients' experience. Neither Raymond James nor any of its financial advisors or RIA firms pay a fee in exchange for this award/rating. Compensation provided for using the ranking. Raymond James is not affiliated with Forbes or Shook Research, LLC. Please visit https://www.forbes.com/lists/best-in-state-women-advisors/?sh=64b505e81d11 for more info.