Some people want to be able to ride their horses on acres of land. Other people want a house by the water. What to do?

One answer is 555 Carpenter Lane in Saunderstown, part of a private waterfront compound called Seven Farms. Each home in the compound, which was originally one large farm, has its own spacious lot but also shares about 180 acres of common space. And the houses also are on Pettaquamscutt Lake, with access to the ocean through the Pettaquamscutt River and Narrows Inlet. The house is for sale at $1,249,000.

“It’s the best of both worlds. My husband loves the water; I’m an equine enthusiast,” said Kara Baruti, who owns the house with her husband, Daniel Baruti, a lawyer and a lieutenant in the Hopkinton Police Department. The couple built the house in 2004 and share the property with three horses, three cats and two dogs. “I grew up on a farm … I wanted a large piece of land where I could have horses,” Kara Baruti said.

Baruti said the couple plan to move to Hopkinton to be closer to relatives. Baruti also plans to open her own equestrian facility in Hopkinton.

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Walk through the House of the Week

As it is, the house at 555 Carpenter Lane, on a 5-acre lot, is well-equiped for the serious horse lover. There’s a post-and-beam barn with four stalls, a heated tack room with adjacent bathroom and a full-size hayloft.

There are paddocks surrounded by white vinyl fences where horses can graze, complete with an automatic watering device and sheds in case the horses need to get out of bad weather. The property includes a sand-surfaced riding ring with exterior lighting.

The house is reached by a private road, about three-quarters of a mile from a set of stone columns. Entering through the main double doors, with glass inserts, takes you to a two-story foyer which has a large arched window over the doorway to bring in the light. Directly in front is the main stairway to the second floor, with oak posts and rails and wrought-iron balusters.

The whole house, with the exception of the guest bedrooms on the second floor, which are carpeted, has beautiful floors of Brazilian cherry.

Immediately to the left of the entrance, through a set of French doors, is a small room now being used as an office, although it could be converted into another bedroom. This room has bookshelves built into the closet. Just to the right of the entrance is a formal dining room, with windows dominating two of the walls.

The dining room leads into a very impressive kitchen, with the appliances gleaming against the cherry cabinetry, which has brushed-nickel hardware. “I love to cook, so the kitchen was a key part of the equation when we built the house,” Baruti said. The kitchen included granite counters and an industrial-strength Thermador stove that appears capable of feeding a small army. The kitchen has two granite-topped islands, one with a sink designed for food preparation and another as a dining area.

From the kitchen, a wide hallway crosses the back of the house, with doors leading to an expansive back deck that overlooks the water. An artificial brook, complete with waterfalls, runs through the backyard.

Past the hallway is the great room, with a cathedral ceiling, a wall of windows overlooking the backyard and a two-story stone fireplace that dominates one of the walls. From the great room, another staircase leads to the second floor.

Completing the first floor is a three-car garage and a half bath.

Upstairs, the master bedroom has a sitting area with a gas fireplace, a ceiling fan and doors that lead out to a second-story deck. There are two walk-in-closets, one on either side of the master bathroom, which has a whirlpool tub beneath a skylight, double sinks, and a glass-doored shower that also functions as a steam room. Floors in both the master bedroom and bathroom are equipped with radiant heat, so your feet won’t get cold.

The second floor also contains a laundry room and three more bedrooms. One of the bedrooms has its own full bath, the other two share a bathroom. One of the guest bedrooms, painted in sky blue and white, is ideal for a little girl.

The property at 555 Carpenter Lane in Saunderstown is for sale at $1,249,000. It has water access and includes a four-stall barn, paddocks, and a riding ring. The main house has four bedrooms, with a possibility for a fifth, three full baths, and one half bath. The house has 3,280 square feet of living space. Real estate taxes were $14,529 last year. The Realtor is Sharon R. Ford, e-mail Sharon@SharonFord.info, phone (401) 440-2954. There will be an open house tomorrow from 2 to 4 p.m. How to submit a House of the Week

A different House of the Week appears each Saturday in the projoHomes section of The Providence Journal. The feature tells the story of the house and the people who have lived in it. If you would like us to consider a house for sale as a subject of this news feature, send a photo, information about the house and why it is of interest, to Christine Dunn or Andy Smith, 75 Fountain St., Providence, RI 02902; fax (401) 277-8250; or e-mail pjhomes@projo.com.

For more information, call Dunn: (401) 277-7913 or Smith: (401) 277-7262.

asmith@projo.com