Leases should be treated just like contracts. They are enforceable and will obligate you to the terms of any signed agreement. Generally, there are two types of leases: "open end" leases and "closed end" leases.

Open end leases:

The concept of capital gains is a specification in the Internal Revenue Code that gives preferential treatment to the sales of certain specified assets. Why is this important? Because, if you buy a specified item and hold it for the specified period of time, the proceeds on the sale of the item are taxed at a rate that is preferable to the rate of many of the tax rates in effect at the time.