Its boundaries are Oakley Creek in the east, Heron Park in the south, the Waitematā Harbour (and Motu Manawa (Pollen Island) Marine Reserve) in the west, and the Northwestern Motorway and the Oakley Creek inlet in the north.

The results were 51.7% European (Pākehā); 13.8% Māori; 23.4% Pasifika; 20.1% Asian; 7.7% Middle Eastern, Latin American and African New Zealanders (MELAA); and 2.4% other, which includes people giving their ethnicity as "New Zealander".

[7] The Waterview (Its maori name, Waitango) area, especially along the coast and inlet areas, has a relatively high incidence of archeologically significant areas, from old settlement remnants (both Maori and early European settler), to a comparatively well-retained site of an old mill/tannery and quarry (Star Mill/Garret Bros Tannery) which is scheduled as a Category I Historic Place, and which once used the stream waters to drive a waterwheel.

[6] A major issue that faced Waterview was the construction of SH20 from Hillsborough through to the Northwestern Motorway.

The route through Waterview was highly contentious until (and to a degree after) a fast-tracked Board of Inquiry process consented a route in mid-2011, which placed a new motorway tunnel portal and motorway interchange at the north end of the suburb, causing the removal of numerous homes in the area.

[9][10] Public transport facilities from Waterview allow access to a range of destinations in Auckland, and a shared walking and cycling path is proposed to link Waterview with Mt Albert and several other suburbs along the State Highway 16 cycle route.