Exhibit 99.1
                                                                    ------------

Press Release

                  CAPITAL ALLIANCE INCOME TRUST LTD. ANNOUNCES
                           EARNINGS FOR FIRST QUARTER


SAN FRANCISCO - (BUSINESS WIRE) - May 23, 2005 - Capital Alliance Income Trust
Ltd. ("CAIT") (AMEX: CAA-news) a residential mortgage REIT, operating both
mortgage investment and mortgage banking businesses, announced net income of
$17,355 (($0.17) basic and ($0.17) diluted per common share) for the three
months ending March 31, 2005, as compared to net income of $277,768 ($0.46 basic
and $0.39 diluted per common share) for the same period in 2004. Revenues were
reported as $510,627 for the three months ending March 31, 2005, as compared to
$711,620 for the same period in 2004. Preferred dividend at $93,077 and $76,788
were paid for the three months ended March 31, 2005 and 2004 respectively.

Richard Wrensen, CAIT's Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer
commented that CAIT's Form 10-QSB and its financial statements included therein,
was filed on May 23, 2005 and The Board of Directors is scheduled to address the
second quarter's common share dividend and the May Preferred share dividend at
their meeting later this week.

CAIT is a specialty residential lender, which invests in conforming and
high-yielding, non-conforming residential mortgage loans on
one-to-four-unit-residential properties located primarily in California and
other western states. Only residential loans with a combined loan-to-value of
75% or less are retained in CAIT's portfolio of mortgage investments.

This document contains "forward-looking statements" (within the meaning of the
Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995) that inherently involve risks
and uncertainties. CAIT's actual results and liquidity may differ materially
from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements because of changes in
the level and composition of CAIT's investments and unforeseen factors. As
discussed in CAIT's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, these
factors may include, but are not limited to, changes in general economic
conditions, the availability of suitable investments, fluctuations in and market
expectations for fluctuations in interest rates and levels of mortgage
prepayments, deterioration in credit quality and ratings, the effectiveness of
risk management strategies, the impact of leverage, the liquidity of secondary
markets and credit markets, increases in costs and other general competitive
factors.

Contact:    Capital Alliance Income Trust Ltd., San Francisco
            Richard J. Wrensen, Executive Vice President and CFO, 415/288-9575
            rwrensen@calliance.com
            www.calliance.com