AEW Real Estate Income Fund as of December 31, 2003.

Business Editors

BOSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 2, 2004

AEW Real Estate Income Fund (AMEX: RIF) had the following portfolio characteristics as of December 31, 2003:

Portfolio Composition(a):

    --  Common shares - 69.1%
    --  Preferred shares - 30.0%
    --  Cash - 0.9%

Top 10 Holdings(a):

1.  Healthcare Realty Trust, Inc. - 4.3%
2.  Senior Housing Properties Trust - 3.3%
3.  iStar Financial, Inc. - 3.2%
4.  HRPT Properties Trust - 3.1%
5.  Urstadt Biddle Properties Series C PFD - 2.9%
6.  Camden Property Trust - 2.9%
7.  Mack Cali Realty Corp. - 2.8%
8.  Gables Residential Trust - 2.7%
9.  CarrAmerica Realty Corp. Series E PFD - 2.6%
10. Liberty Property Trust - 2.6%

    Percentage of Total Assets in Top 10 Holdings - 30.4%

Sector allocation (includes investments in common & preferred
 shares)(a):

 Office & Industrial - 33.3%
 Retail - 21.5%
 Residential - 13.4%
 Healthcare - 10.4%
 Net Lease - 8.9%
 Hotel - 7.8%
 Other - 3.8%
 Cash - 1.0%

(a)Note: Percentages above based on gross assets.

Issuer Allocation (includes investments in common and preferred
 shares):

    --  50 Issuers/61 Securities
    --  No single security represents over 4.3% of gross assets
    --  Only four securities represent over 3.0% of gross assets

Portfolio Statistics:

 Inception Date:    November 29, 2002
 Leverage:          The fund has issued one series of auction market
                    preferred shares of $28,000,000. The preferred
                    shares represented approximately 35% of the
                    fund's capital immediately after their issuance.
                    The preferred shares leverage shareholders'
                    investments in the common shares.
 Total Net Assets:  $ 72,737,412 (as of 12/31/03)
 Total Gross Assets:$ 100,914,112 (as of 12/31/03)
 Market Price:      $ 17.92 (as of 12/31/03)
 NAV:               $ 18.97 (as of 12/31/03)

The AEW Real Estate Income Fund's primary investment objective is high current income; its secondary investment objective is capital appreciation. The fund currently seeks to achieve its investment objectives by investing primarily in common and preferred stock issued by real estate investment trusts and other real estate companies. The fund's portfolio manager is Matthew A. Troxell, CFA. Jeffrey P. Caira, J. Hall Jones, Jr., CFA, and Roman Ranocha, CFA, are assistant portfolio managers of the fund.

The AEW Real Estate Income Fund, a non-diversified closed-end investment management company, is advised by AEW Management and Advisors, L.P., an affiliate of AEW Capital Management, L.P. (AEW), which is a subsidiary of CDC IXIS Asset Management North America, L.P. AEW is a real estate investment manager, providing services to institutions, mutual funds, and other investors in commercial property and real estate securities. AEW and its affiliates currently manage approximately $17 billion of capital, which is invested in $23 billion of real estate and securities in the U.S., Canada, and Europe. For further information, visit www.aew.com or www.cdcixisadvisors.com/aew_rif/.