This redirection came yesterday from the group's interim results for the six months ended December, which showed a maiden distribution of 36c a linked unit.
Interim revenue was R71m and operating profit was R50,5m.
iFour CEO Anthony Diepenbroek said the group had put in place an aggressive tenant retention strategy, which resulted in the maintenance of a 96,2% occupancy rate.
'Nevertheless, we recognise that this strategy alone will be insufficient for us to maintain our current rate of lease renewals.
'Our long-term strategy is to achieve a balance in the portfolio, which will reduce our reliance on the office market until such time as this market reaches equilibrium,' he said.
Diepenbroek said the group's performance was satisfactory given the problem of oversupply of office space, 'exacerbated by unbridled speculative development, particularly in Johannesburg's northern suburbs.
'We have managed to hold our own in an exceptionally difficult market,' said Diepenbroek.
Listed in June last year, iFour maintains a property portfolio valued at R730m.
The group was born out of the unbundling of iProp, which transferred a portfolio of properties valued at R246,3m into iFour, and the rest was acquired from independent vendors.
The group has made known its intention to grow the fund to above the R1bn level.
After it issued a cautionary notice in October last year on the same day as two other listed property funds, Bonatla and AProp, speculation emerged that iFour was in merger talks with these two funds.
The initiative seems to have faltered as iFour withdrew its cautionary notice recently.
Diepenbroek said significant corporate activity was taking place in the listed property sector, and the group was watching developments closely.
'A clear realignment of the sector is under way and we are taking steps to ensure we play a strategic role in that realignment,' he said.
The group seems to be looking at carving a niche in certain older commercial nodes.
'We have noticed that the trend to new office developments located far from supporting infrastructure like transport and retail outlets seems to be losing momentum,' he said.
Diepenbroek said that business owners and their employees could no longer afford the high cost of transport or the time spent commuting long distances to work. 'So well-serviced areas like Parktown in Johannesburg are exhibiting increased uptake of space despite the fact that the grade of buildings might be slightly less stylish than a new, decentralised development.'
He said that even the Johannesburg central business district was showing signs of revival.
IFour had identified a significant shortage of high-quality warehousing and distribution space in prime industrial locations. This sector had largely underperformed for the past few years, and had been neglected by developers, resulting in a marked shortage of desirable properties.
He said the group was expecting tough conditions to continue. Results for the six months to June would be in line with those of the interim period.