Hello. If we haven’t met, I’m Magdalena Buchardt. I write under the name Maggie Mark and am the founder of Riviera State of Mind™.

Riviera State of Mind™ brings together my work in private property, relocation, regional intelligence, strategic advisory and publishing, with a particular focus on Monaco, the French Riviera and the Italian Riviera.

I have spent more than 25 years living outside my country of birth, building homes and businesses across the United States, Scandinavia, Austria, Greece, Italy and France. Today, I am based on the Côte d’Azur and work across the three Rivieras, drawing on first-hand experience of the practical, financial and emotional realities of moving between countries.

The Riviera is usually presented through beautiful images: blue water, elegant architecture, grand hotels, terraces, yachts and an enviable Mediterranean lifestyle. All of that exists. So do residency requirements, property decisions, taxes, healthcare systems, schools, banking procedures, cultural differences and the occasional administrative maze.

Riviera State of Mind™ was created to bring those two sides together.

I work with private buyers, investors, owners, family representatives and trusted professionals across luxury residential real estate, selected off-market opportunities, hotels, hospitality assets and development projects. My role may involve helping someone define and navigate a property search, supporting an international move, making the right professional introductions or bringing greater clarity and visibility to a property, hospitality or advisory business.

Through Riviera State of Mind™ Books and Guides, I also publish carefully researched regional intelligence for those considering Monaco, the Côte d’Azur or Liguria. These guides look beyond the postcard version to examine the realities of living, relocating, buying, investing and building a life here.

A property is more than an address. A relocation changes far more than a postcode. And the right opportunity often begins with an informed conversation rather than a public listing.

My mission is to help people approach those decisions with better information, appropriate professional support and a clearer understanding of what they are stepping into.

I believe in preparation, discretion, personal responsibility and doing things properly. Important decisions deserve considered questions, verifiable information and people who understand the consequences - not unnecessary pressure or impressive-sounding promises.

My background spans finance, marketing, journalism, writing, business strategy, coaching and real estate. I hold postgraduate qualifications in finance and business, trained in journalism through the London School of Journalism, studied strategy through Harvard Business School Online and qualified as a Master Business Coach.

Formal education matters to me, but experience has taught me just as much: building businesses, working across cultures, navigating international moves and learning how differently institutions, markets and people operate from one country to another.

Languages are part of that perspective. They provide access to cultures, humour, history and ways of thinking that rarely survive a literal translation.

I value honesty, intellectual curiosity, science, fairness and work that has substance behind it. I believe in setting realistic expectations, protecting trust and delivering more value than was promised.

♥ I love the sea, travel, books, music and photography. This will surprise precisely nobody.

♥ My nickname has long been “Hurricane Maggie.” I move quickly, think quickly, and occasionally collide with furniture that has been in the same place for years.

♥ I have lived in several countries and still believe that learning how people actually live somewhere is far more interesting than collecting destinations.

♥ I am passionate about books, art, architecture, watersports, and any place with a compelling history.

♥ My musical taste travels comfortably from heavy metal and hard rock to classical music and jazz. It has range. So do I.

♥ I enjoy experimenting with hairstyles and makeup. A little vanity, properly managed, has never brought down a civilisation.

♥ I am an enthusiastic Christmas person and begin watching Christmas films earlier than I am generally prepared to admit without chocolate-based negotiation.

♥ I have an occasional daredevil streak and have been known to say yes to rafting, difficult hikes and ideas that sound only mildly unreasonable.

♥ I am nearly always writing something: an article, a guide, a story, a book or a sentence that arrived at an inconvenient hour and refused to leave.

If you are considering life, property or business on the Riviera - or would simply like to know more about my work - you are welcome to get in touch through the Contact page.