ASIANS SEE OPPORTUNITY AFFORDABLE HOUSES MAKE AREA POPULAR.

Byline: Eugene Tong Staff Writer

SANTA CLARITA - Janet Lee took a chance when she abandoned the Korean community in Torrance 17 years ago and blazed a trail north chasing the dream of home ownership.

``With $200,000, you can't buy a house in Torrance,'' said Lee, 44, who now runs a local real estate firm with her husband that specializes in serving Korean-Americans. ``But up here (in the Santa Clarita area) you can. ... We drove around and we liked the openness in the town. There was a lot of vacant land. We felt there was a lot of opportunity.''

Myrna Trinidad had the same idea about 12 years later when she pulled up stakes from Sunland and came to the city to help run the local office of a Philippines cargo and remittance service. ``I knew that it was going to grow,'' said Trinidad, 52, who built a small Filipino market around the cargo counter. ``This is the next place they would develop.''

For many immigrants, Santa Clarita appeared to embody the American suburban dream, with the siren's song of low crime, quality schools and relatively affordable housing drawing newcomers from around the world.

According to 2000 census figures, 139 of Santa Clarita's 808 Koreans, about 17 percent, are new arrivals who landed in the United States within the last eight years. Filipinos, the largest Asian group in the city at 2,489, has the second largest number of recent immigrants with 12 percent arriving since 1995.

For Lee, who came to the U.S. from Korea in 1974, life as one of the first Korean households in Valencia took some getting used to. ``After dinner, we didn't have anywhere to go except for the Mann 10 Theater,'' she said. ``When I told my friends in (Los Angeles) that my town had no shopping mall, they were shocked.''

Then there were the occasional stares in the years before the 1990s growth spurt brought more diversity to the city. Lee recalled walking out of a restaurant bar with her husband when the gaze from some patrons made them uncomfortable.

``When I walk into the market or into restaurants, people were sort of looking at me,'' she said. ``We had a few episodes like that. It took a little while. ... But I have a lot of friends now, and not just Koreans.''

As the community grew, the comforts of home soon followed. In 1991, a Korean Presbyterian church was established. A Korean grocery store opened earlier this year.

Many of the Korean newcomers are young families who come looking for new single-family homes around $400,000, Lee said. Her firm, 30th Century Realty, serves more than 50 homebuyers a month - mostly Southland refugees. ``The schools are nice, and there's a low crime rate,'' she said.

``And the rent in L.A. is really high. If they have good credit and a small down payment, they can buy a house up here.'' Trinidad, who came to the United States from the Philippines in 1972, knew Filipinos also would be drawn to the city. She and her husband, Dennis, built the Hundred Islands Oriental Market about three years ago to serve the growing ethnic niche.

``They tend to go to areas that are good for the kids and for the schools,'' she said. ``Santa Clarita is a really nice place to live. It's family oriented.''

The market seemed tailored to the needs of local Filipinos - a one-stop shop where customers can send packages or money to the Philippines and pick up island specialties previously available in Los Angeles only. They can rent videos and even order lechon - Filipino-style whole roast pigs essential for every backyard bash - without the long drive south.

Business has grown steadily over the last five years, from roughly 50 customers a week to more than 300.

``It's really busy,'' said Dennis Trinidad, 44. ``We have to drive to Los Angeles two times or three times a week to restock.''

But that may not last forever. As the community continues to grow and her niche becomes more lucrative, competition is inevitable. However, Trinidad has a plan.

``We'll start serving food,'' she said. ``We don't have any Filipino restaurants in Santa Clarita.''

Eugene Tong, [phone]

eugene.tong(at)dailynews.com

CAPTION(S):

3 photos, box

Photo:

(1 -- color) Dennis Trinidad, 44, built Hundred Islands Oriental Market a few years ago to serve the growing ethnic niche. He says business is so good, he is driving to Los Angeles several times a week to restock.

(2 -- color) Janet Lee, 44, moved to Valencia from Torrance 17 years ago and now runs a real estate firm that caters to Korean-Americans.

(3) Myrna Trinidad, 52, moved to the Santa Clarita Valley from Sunland to help run a Philippines cargo and remittance service.

David R. Crane/Staff Photographer

Box:

WHO WE ARE: PROFILING THE SANTA CLARITA VALLEY

SOURCES: U.S. Census Bureau; Dr. Eugene Turner; geography professor, California State University, Northridge; Daily News research by Beth Barrett, staff writer