The problem is the fund is always being closed because it bumps up against its investment limits of between 5% and 10% of the 25 sector funds, set by the Collective Investment Schemes (CIS) Act. And the listing of five or six new property funds due this year isn't going to provide any relief.

"They are all quite small funds with their units going to the, mainly institutional, vendors of the properties making up the funds," says Marriott asset manager Ian Anderson. "Few of those vendors will want to sell on."

Anderson makes a virtue of necessity by pointing out that the listed property sector is fully priced for the good news and it is unlikely to offer any income or capital growth in the next 12 months because a depressed office market is still hurting the industry.

Marriott's admittedly conservative view is that income is likely to grow only about 3% in the following year or two. But those comments apply to the broad sector, which most industry observers agree will stand still.

Some individual funds should perform well. Corpcapital's Marc Wainer points to Spearhead raising income 13% this June and he is budgeting for another 12% rise next year. He predicts large funds should grow about 4% over the next 12 months.

That points to a weakness in large, broad-based property funds like Marriott which are forced by the CIS into spreading their bets across the sector.

The other four smaller funds - Coronation, Oasis and the two Standard Bank funds - are still small enough to pick and choose investments. Your best bet is to invest with them or wait until Marriott opens again sometime next year.