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Capital Automotive Declares Fourth Quarter 1999 Dividend of $0.36

6 December 1999

Capital Automotive Declares Fourth Quarter 1999 Dividend of $0.36

                      8th Consecutive Quarterly Increase

    McLEAN, Va., Dec. 6 -- Capital Automotive , the
nation's leading specialty finance company for automotive retail real estate,
today announced that its Board of Trustees has declared a quarterly cash
dividend of $0.36 per share for the fourth quarter ending December 31, 1999.
The dividend is payable on January 31, 2000 to shareholders of record as of
December 31, 1999.
    Thomas D. Eckert, President and Chief Executive Officer, stated, "The
fourth quarter dividend reflects the 8th consecutive increase in our quarterly
dividend.  Our annual dividend for 1999 will be $1.38 per share and the fourth
quarter's dividend represents an annualized rate of $1.44 per share.  Our cash
flows remain very stable; in fact, we have not encountered a single rental
payment default since our inception, reflecting the high quality of our
dealership groups and our stringent underwriting standards."
    Capital Automotive, headquartered in McLean, Va., is a self-administered,
self-managed real estate investment trust formed to acquire the real property
and improvements used by operators of multi-site, multi-franchised automotive
dealerships and related businesses.  As of November 30, 1999, the Company has
invested approximately $929 million in automotive properties.  Additional
information on Capital Automotive is available on the Company's web site at
http://www.capitalautomotive.com .
    To receive Capital Automotive's latest news and corporate developments via
fax at no cost, please call 1-800-PRO-INFO; use Company code CARS.  Or visit
The Financial Relations Board's web site at http://www.frbinc.com .

    Certain matters discussed within this press release are forward-looking
statements within the meaning of the federal securities laws.  Although the
Company believes that the expectations reflected in the forward-looking
statements are based upon reasonable assumptions, the Company's future
operations will depend on a number of factors that may differ, some
materially, from the Company's assumptions.  These factors, which could cause
the Company's actual results to differ materially from those set forth in the
forward-looking statements, include risks that the Company's tenants will not
pay rent or that the Company's operating costs may be higher than expected,
risks of interest rate fluctuations impacting future acquisitions, risks that
additional acquisitions may not be consummated, environmental and other risks
associated with the acquisition and leasing of automotive properties and those
risks detailed from time to time in the Company's SEC reports, including its
annual report on Form 10-K and its quarterly reports on Form 10-Q.