The suburb is located in the Wattle farm peninsula of the Manukau Harbour and is in the Manurewa-Papakura ward, one of the thirteen administrative divisions of Auckland Council.

Wattle Downs was home to a Waiohua pā called Takirangaranga, meaning "upraised land".

Its name originated from the 200-acre blackwood and silver leaf wattle grove planted on the peninsula in 1884 by farmer Mr White for an extract from the bark used in the tanning of skins.

The project would subsequently fail due to planting the wrong trees, however, the name 'Wattle Farm' remained.

Several artificial wetlands and detention ponds were built in reserves for stormwater management and creating small habitats for wildlife.

The coastline of the Wattle downs peninsula has had erosion control implemented using rock retaining walls after a management plan by the former Manukau City Council was introduced in 1993 to combat seashore erosion in the suburb's coastal reserves.

[18] Historically, Kauri trees were prominent in the area; it was a place where the Te Waiohua tribes collected Kauri resin as it was required to produce the tattoo pigment used in Tā moko (traditional Māori tattoos).

[34] It was opened on 21 July 1979 during the early stages of the suburb's development and was co-designed by New Zealand professional golfer Sir Bob Charles.

[36] The path includes views over Waimahia Creek and Pahurehure Inlet towards Conifer Grove, Weymouth and Karaka.

A footbridge across the Papakura Stream linking Wattle Downs to the newly established suburb of Waiata Shores has been proposed.

After the sewage ponds were decommissioned, the Manukau City Council acquired the land to be developed as Wattle Farm Reserve.

[38][39] The two ponds now act as a freshwater cleansing system to take the silt from the runoff of the Papakura and Waimahia streams before it flows into the Manukau Harbour.