CenterPoint Provides Initial 2005 Earnings Guidance; Raises Annual Common Dividend 11th Consecutive Year.

OAK BROOK, Ill. -- CenterPoint Properties Trust (NYSE:CNT) today announced its initial 2005 earnings guidance. The Company anticipates earnings per share (EPS) in the range of $1.80 to $2.10 and funds from operations (FFO) in the range of $2.45 to $2.65 per share, inclusive of a $0.09 non-cash charge for potential stock grant vesting. For the first quarter 2005, the Company expects to report EPS in the range of $0.42 to $0.52 and FFO in the range of $0.59 to $0.63 per share. The Company's Board of Trustees voted to raise the annual common stock dividend to $1.71 from $1.56 per share, an increase of approximately 9.6% over 2004. This is the eleventh consecutive annual dividend increase since the Company's IPO in 1993.

The Company also reaffirmed earnings guidance for 2004. Full year EPS is expected to range between $1.70 and $1.90 and FFO per share is expected to range between $2.33 and $2.37. The Company expects to report fourth quarter 2004 EPS in the range of $0.39 to $0.59 and FFO per share in the range of $0.61 to $0.65.

CenterPoint defines FFO as: net income available to common shareholders plus real estate depreciation and non-financing amortization, inclusive of fee income and gain or losses on industrial property sales (net of accumulated depreciation) of the Company and its unconsolidated affiliates. (Please see attached Release Definitions for further explanation of FFO.)

"We feel very comfortable with our initial 2005 earnings guidance based on growing activity in the 1.3-billion-square-foot metropolitan Chicago industrial property market," stated Michael M. Mullen, President and Chief Operating Officer. "Leasing activity is improving and, more importantly, 'value-added' acquisition, development and redevelopment opportunities are expanding. Earlier today, we announced a $96 million, 3-million-square-foot portfolio acquisition, two new development joint ventures and a public/private partnership for a new 800-acre business park. Our franchise - combined with our sizable land position of more than 3,000 acres - gives us a significant advantage in metropolitan Chicago and should help us capitalize on these and other emerging opportunities."

Paul S. Fisher, Chief Financial Officer, noted, "Our balance sheet remains strong as we continue to source attractive capital, like the ventures announced today and the recently announced preferred issuance. These will supplement internally generated funds to fuel expanding investment. As in the past, we expect to fund the majority of new investments using proceeds from dispositions, improving the yield on this capital. Again this year, we expect to sell around 15-20% of our average book assets. The disposition market remains very liquid and sale cap rates remain at historic lows. As a result, the spread between our disposition yields and our investment yields, a key driver of share value creation, remains wide."

"For 2005, we have also included potential stock grant vesting in our earnings guidance. Pursuant to CenterPoint's long-term pay-for-performance compensation plan, stock grants are available to all employees if the Company achieves above-average results including total shareholder return. The 2002 grants will only vest after shareholders have received a total return of at least 79.4% since the beginning of 2002. While very likely to vest in mid-2005 given the current share price, excluding this non-cash charge, we would expect EPS to increase approximately 14% and FFO per share to increase approximately 13% next year."

Payout Ratio and Record Dates

The new annual common stock dividend of $1.71 results in an FFO payout ratio of approximately 67%. This payout ratio remains relatively low and is the minimum payout management believes will be required by the REIT rules.

The Company's low payout ratio is a result of its desire to maximize internal capital formation. The record and pay dates for the common and preferred dividends are as follows:

For the quarter ending March 31, 2005, a dividend of $0.4275 per common share will be paid February 8, 2005 to shareholders of record January 27, 2005.

For the quarter ending March 31, 2005, $0.9375 per share of its 7.50% Series B Convertible Cumulative Redeemable Preferred Shares (NYSE:CNT-pB) will be paid March 31, 2005 to shareholders of record March 15, 2005.

Conference Call

CenterPoint will discuss its 2005 earnings guidance on a conference call, which will be held Wednesday, December 22, 2004 at 2:00 p.m. Eastern Time (1:00 p.m. Central Time). This call is being broadcast live and can be accessed at the Investor Relations page of CenterPoint's web site, www.cntprop.com.

CenterPoint Properties Trust

CenterPoint is a publicly traded real estate investment trust (REIT) and the largest industrial property company in the 1.3-billion-square-foot Chicago regional market. As of September 30, 2004, the Company owned or operated approximately 37 million square feet and the Company and its affiliates owned or controlled an additional 3,138 acres of land upon which approximately 48 million square feet could be developed. The Company is focused on providing unsurpassed tenant satisfaction and adding value to its shareholders through customer driven management, investment, development and redevelopment of warehouse, distribution, light manufacturing buildings and logistics infrastructure. The first major REIT to focus on the industrial property sector, CenterPoint has a total market capitalization of approximately $3.0 billion.

Statements in this release which are not historical may be deemed forward-looking statements under federal securities laws. There can be no assurance that future results will be achieved and actual results could differ materially from forecasts and estimates. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially are general business and economic conditions, completion of pending acquisitions, competitive market conditions, weather, pricing of debt and equity capital markets and other risks inherent in the real estate business. Such factors and others are listed in the Company's Form 10-K and 10-Qs.

Release Definitions to Follow....

CENTERPOINT PROPERTIES TRUST RELEASE DEFINITIONS

FFO Payout Ratio is dividends paid during the period divided into Funds from Operations for that same period.

Funds From Operations (FFO) The National Associations of Real Estate Investment Trust ("NAREIT") defines funds from operations ("FFO") (April, 2002 White Paper) as net income excluding gains (or losses) from sales of property, plus depreciation and amortization. NAREIT adds, "management of each of its member companies has the responsibility and authority to publish financial information that it regards as useful to the financial community." Accordingly, CenterPoint calculates FFO, inclusive of fee income and industrial property sales (net of accumulated depreciation) of the Company and its unconsolidated affiliates. The Company believes that FFO inclusive of cash gains better reflects recurring funds because the disposition of stabilized properties, and the recycling of capital and profits into new "value added" investments, is fundamental to the Company's business strategy.