The short answer to this question is, yes, furniture is an asset. However, the long answer to this question is not so simple. While it can be argued that a sofa or a bed could be considered an asset if it’s worth more than you paid for it, the same cannot be said of your dining room table or kitchen chairs. These items may have sentimental value or they may have been passed down from generation to generation, but they are not considered assets because they do not have any monetary value.
The term “asset” has a very specific legal definition in the United States. According to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), an asset is something that has value and yields income or profit. For example, stocks and bonds are classified as assets because they produce dividends for the holder. A house is also considered an asset because it produces rental income for its owner every month. The important thing to remember about assets is that they must generate income in order to be classified as such by the IRS.
Assets are also classified as either tangible or intangible. Tangible assets are physical objects that have value, such as a house or a car. Intangible assets are rights that do not have any physical form, such as intellectual property and goodwill.
Assets also have a lifespan. The IRS has strict rules regarding the classification of assets as long-term or short-term based on their useful life. Long-term assets are those that are expected to last longer than one year, such as buildings and machinery. Short-term assets are those that will be used up within one year, such as inventory and furniture.