the name "te atatu south" was attributed to the area in 1961 when the area of te atatu was divided by the northwestern motorway (state highway 16). with the new motorway, the area rapidly changed in 10 years from rural to suburban. while new homes in te atatu peninsula were dominated by one builder, "neil homes", te atatu south had more diversity in new homes and a large quantity of larger quality family homes. these homes reflected te atatu south being one of the more affluent areas in west auckland during the 1970s and 1980s.