Equestrian estates: Home is where the hooves are

Increased demand

At approximately 43 acres, the property includes fenced paddocks, a pasture and wooded areas. The property is listed for about $4.4 million with Hamptons International.

The London firm formed an equestrian department in 2011 and says it has seen more interest in equestrian estates listed for more than $2 million. It says prices for these properties in England have increased 3% in the past year.

"There's strong demand for properties with land and stables," says Nick Hole-Jones, head of the new department.

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10 acres in California

The trend has moved to the U.S., too. Equestrian brokers in Southern California report as much as a 50% increase in sales year to year.

This 10-acre estate in Carpinteria, Calif., is listed for $14.95 million with Suzanne Perkins, a real-estate agent with Sotheby's International Realty.

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If you can lead a horse to water

In addition to the 8,725-square-foot home, the property includes fruit orchards, a vineyard and a six-stall barn, Perkins says.

Rising boarding fees in the U.S. and abroad are prompting owners to keep their horses at home. At high-end stables in the Northeast and California, monthly fees for training, housing and feeding can easily reach $3,000 per horse.

Part of that is attributed to rising agriculture prices, with oat prices up 14% from 2011 through July and alfalfa-hay prices up 5% in the same period.

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Villa Sevillano

Also in Carpinteria, Villa Sevillano is listed for $21.5 million. The 22-acre Mediterranean estate has equestrian facilities and a large exercise field for horses.

The main house is just over 10,000 square feet with six bedrooms. Perkins is the listing agent.

• Video: Tour an equestrian English manor

• MSN Living: Inside a stable-turned-kitchen

• Bing: Get horse-riding lessons

Private ranch

Located in Santa Ynez, Calif., this roughly 3,200-acre property was once envisioned as a ranch community. The ranch includes an approximately 7,000-square-foot residence, several barns and a guest house.

The main home, pictured here, includes six bedrooms and seven bathrooms. There is ample space for equestrian activities, Perkins says.

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High barrier of entry

Perkins is listing the Santa Ynez property for $24.5 million.

One of the biggest challenges, she says, is separating serious buyers from those toying with the fantasy of owning a farm. A family may like the idea of keeping ponies in the pasture but doesn't consider where a caretaker will reside or how to catch a horse that has escaped the paddock.

For another of Perkins' properties, prospective buyers had to pay $7,000 to charter a helicopter for the day to tour the property before viewing it on the ground.

"If you couldn't pay for the helicopter, then you weren't a buyer for this ranch," Perkins says.

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Room to roam

This 12,215-square-foot French Provincial estate north of Ocala, Fla., is on just over 561 acres, which include a 17-stall barn, a 15-stall barn and a 12-stall barn.

There is also detached office space for a professional equestrian operation, as well as an "aqua treadmill," which is akin to water aerobics for horses, listing agent Joan Pletcher says.

Finding a suitable property can seem impossible, specialists say. At best, most equestrian-property owners find 80% of what they need and usually renovate the rest of the property, says John Friend, a real-estate agent with Houlihan Lawrence in Millbrook, N.Y.

• Video: Tour an equestrian English manor

• MSN Living: Inside a stable-turned-kitchen

• Bing: Get horse-riding lessons

Florida living

The Ocala-area property is listed for $15.995 million.

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• Video: Explore $25 million equestrian estate

• msnNOW: Check out a Korean horseback exercise machine

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