A capital asset is property that is expected to generate value over a long period of time. Capital assets form the productive base of an organization. Examples of capital assets are buildings, computer equipment, machinery, and vehicles. In asset-intensive industries, companies tend to invest a large part of their funds in capital assets.

A capital asset has the following characteristics:

• It has an expected useful life of more than one year
• Its acquisition cost exceeds a company-designated minimum amount, known as the capitalization limit
• It is not expected to be sold as a normal part of business operations, as would be the case for inventory
• It tends not to be easily convertible into cash

Capital assets are defined differently when viewed from a tax perspective. For tax purposes, a capital asset is all property held by a taxpayer, with the exceptions of inventory and accounts receivable.

the Capital Asset Management Service (CAMS) is charged with managing VA’s portfolio of capital assets, performance monitoring of the portfolio, real property management, disposal and reuse planning, real property data management, and on-going analysis of the portfolio. In support of these responsibilities, We oversees implementation, maintenance and enhancements for three information technology systems used to manage VA’s real property portfolio through the full asset life cycle, as well as multiple SharePoint sites. Example of activities these systems facilitate include management and oversight of underutilized and vacant properties, producing the multi-year disposal and reuse Plans, and implementation of the “Freeze the Footprint” (FTF) policy requirements.