• A $22,000 Tesla might be too good to be true, but you can find good deals right now.
• High mileage on a used EV can be a red flag.
• EV's already depreciate a lot faster than gas cars.

A slew of used Teslas have hit the Hertz car sales website after the company announced Thursday it planned to sell off 10,000 more electric vehicles from its fleet than originally planned, bringing the fire sale's total to 30,000.

Across the US, there are nearly 3,000 EVs listed on the firm's sales website — 1,500 of them Teslas — with Model 3s asking as low as $22,000 when we checked. (And even lower for a Chevy Bolt).

It's a screaming deal for shoppers in the market for a used Tesla or any budget-minded EV shopper, a demographic slowly making up most of the electric car market.

A car-rental company like Hertz is always a good place to look for a deal on a used car, but when it comes to EVs, there are a number of different pitfalls to keep in mind since the used market is not near as mature for battery-powered vehicles.

Mileage and battery usage

A used Tesla that has been in a rental fleet is likely to used much more frequently than one that's been personally owned.

You can see that in the difference in mileage when you look on Kelley Blue Book for a used Model 3. One example in Southeast Michigan was listed for $27,995 at a local dealership with 46,171 miles.

Another $20,125 Model 3 we found on the Hertz website in January, a 2021 model, was listed with 92,789 miles.

Mileage is always something to consider when shopping for a used car, but with electric vehicles little is known at this early stage about battery deterioration at high mileages. This mystery in the valuation equation has created a headache for the industry as more electric cars hit the used market.

Maintenance

Used cars tend to require more maintenance than a car fresh from the factory. With an EV that can look different than a simple part or filter replacement.

One of the reasons Hertz cited in its Thursday filing for reducing its EV fleet was the elevated cost of maintenance for these vehicles. Teslas in particular are notoriously difficult to service, due to the lack of brick-and-mortar infrastructure for Tesla service and the level of technology packed into the cars.

Even something as simple as a fender bender can be difficult to manage with a Tesla, and these cars are a lot easier to total than their gas-powered counterparts.

Consider the cost of keeping your Tesla charged

While $20,000 is an incredible deal in today's car market (the average new car sells for around $46,000, and the average new EV closer to $50,000), adding an EV to your driveway comes with more than just the sticker price on the car.

In order to get the most out of an electric vehicle, it's usually recommended to have some form of fast charging at home. These chargers cost anywhere from $250 to $750, and installation can run you somewhere around $1,600.

Depending on your state, the energy usage for overnight charging can start to get pricey as well.

Electric cars depreciate quickly

Perhaps one of the reasons you can get such a good deal on a Tesla at Hertz right now is that the outlook for EV value retention is pretty grim at the moment.

A recent study from iSeeCars found that electric cars have an average five-year depreciation rate of 49.1%, compared to an industry average of 38.8%.

Tesla's Model 3 does fare the best in resale values, only falling 42.9% in five years, but as Tesla lathers on more discounts for new models, that could quicken the pace of depreciation.

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• It's still likely the Fed will issue its first rate cut this June, Citi economist Veronica Clark said.
• That's because central bankers will need to support a weakening labor market, Clark told Yahoo Finance.
• The job market has shown signs of weakening in some sectors, like manufacturing.

The Federal Reserve is still likely to cut rates in June in order to prop up the labor market amid a slowdown in hiring, according to Citi economist Veronica Clark. 

Speaking with Yahoo Finance this week, Clark pointed to signs of weakness in the US labor market, despite robust job growth seen so far this year. The US added 303,000 payrolls last month, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics — the third straight month of stronger-than-anticipated hiring.

But that growth could start to slow later in 2024, Clark predicted. Manufacturing employment activity continued to contract in March, a sign that hiring is already starting to weaken in some sectors. The unemployment rate, meanwhile, has inched higher in recent months, with the total jobless rate notching a 2-year-high of 3.9% in February.

"We have a base case for June still," Clark said of rate cuts, though she noted a July Fed rate cut was also possible. "If anything, we think inflation is pretty sticky, but we think the Fed is looking at some of this labor market data … and really getting worried that we might be entering a weaker labor market." 

Fed officials raised interest rates 525 basis-points over the last two years. That's helped tame inflation but has raised the risk of a recession, the first signs of which could crop up in the labor market, economists have warned.

While Clark anticipates looser Fed policy, investors have pushed back on their outlook for Fed rate cuts this year after a hotter-than-expected inflation report in March. Markets are now pricing in just one or two cuts by December, according to the CME FedWatch tool, down from as many as seven rate cuts projected at the start of 2024. 

Central bankers, for their part, have suggested interest rates should remain higher for longer. The Fed needs more confidence that inflation is on track to return to its 2% price target, Powell said recently, sparking a sharp pullback in stocks in this month as investors recalibrated rate-cut expectations. 

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• A New York City lawyer is suing his ex-boyfriend, also a lawyer, for custody of a miniature poodle.
• The couple purchased the dog — Raven — together in 2020, but broke up last month.
• Taylor Leighton, who called the dog his 'child,' is also seeking more than $200,000 in damages.

A New York lawyer is suing his former boyfriend, also a lawyer, for custody of their miniature poodle and more than $200,000 in damages, according to an affidavit published by the Daily Beast.

According to the affidavit, Taylor Leighton, who works for Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP, is seeking the recovery of Countess Raven, a three-year-old black miniature poodle.

The dog, purchased in 2020 from a Minnesota-based breeder, was named after actor Raven-Symoné and "Countess" Luann de Lesseps of "The Real Housewives of New York City," the affidavit said.

The affidavit noted that the dog was purchased from a breeder for $2,791, including a $300 deposit.

In the affidavit, Leighton argued that although Nathan Greess contributed $2,000 toward the purchase, it was only because he owed money for household expenses.

The couple broke up last month, with Leighton claiming it was over his reluctance to commit to marriage.

Leighton argued in the legal document that he was Raven's "primary caretaker" and that they shared a "unique, personal bond" forged by the time he spent with her before his ex-boyfriend woke each morning.

To underscore his commitment to the dog, he wrote in the affidavit how he planned an "extravagant first birthday party" for Raven.

"I spent several days planning and decorating, including blowing up hundreds of balloons and placing decals on the wall to give Raven a special day," he said, adding that he was "one of those crazy pet parents."

He also said in the affidavit that he had not seen the dog since March 10, the day after, he claimed, an altercation led to him being admitted to the hospital and the police being called.

"It has now been more than a month since I have been able to see Raven and I know that this is causing her undue stress and anxiety," Leighton said. "It is certainly causing me extreme anxiety, stress, and depression."

In the affidavit, he also described Raven as more than just a pet: "I consider her to be my child."

Neither Greess nor Leighton immediately responded to Business Insider's requests for comment.

According to Scripps News, pet custody battles have been steadily increasing as a trend over the past few decades. The news channel said that they have become so prevalent that pet-custody mediators now offer "pet-nups."

Leighton said in the affidavit that he had tried to resolve the situation, with the pair's fathers acting as intermediaries, but both had now retained legal counsel.

According to the news outlet, in addition to custody, Leighton is seeking $100,000 for intentional infliction of emotional distress, $100,000 for negligent infliction of emotional distress, and $7,791 for the purchase of Raven and the cost of her care.

Leighton also requested that a judge order Greess to share custody of the dog until a final determination is reached, according to the Daily Beast.

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• Mint Butterfield, the teen child of two tech founders, has gone missing in California.
• Butterfield, 16, is believed to have run away, local authorities say — perhaps to San Francisco
• Authorities are appealing for help finding Butterfield.

Mint Butterfield, the teen child of tech founders who set up Slack and Flickr, went missing over the weekend.

The 16-year-old was last seen on Sunday evening in Bolinas, California, north of San Francisco.

The local sheriff's office put out a missing-juvenile alert on Tuesday seeking information about them.

The alert, described in a Nextdoor post by K. Walther, a deputy in the Marin County Sheriff's Office, said Butterfield was last seen Sunday at 10 p.m.

The following morning, Walther said, Butterfield was gone. She asked for anybody with information to contact the sheriff's office.

The San Francisco Standard wrote that Butterfield was reported missing Monday by their mother, Flickr cofounder Caterina Fake.

Their father is Stewart Butterfield, who cofounded Flickr with Fake and went on to cofound the workplace messaging service Slack.

Representatives for Marin County Sheriff's Office, Stewart Butterfield, and Fake did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Walther's Nextdoor post said Butterfield likely took a suitcase, and may have headed for San Francisco itself.

In the past, Butterfield often visited San Francisco's Tenderloin district, an area known for homelessness, crime, and drugs, officials told The Standard.

DailyMail.com reported that Butterfield may be somewhere else, though, citing a social-media post by a family friend.

The friend, per the report, said Butterfield was seen in Larkspur Landing, north of San Francisco and around a 50-minute drive from Bolinas.

Business Insider was unable to verify the report.

Marin County Sheriff's Office described Butterfield as being five feet tall with "brown/reddish curly hair" and pierced eyebrows. They were last seen wearing a black sweatshirt, flannel pajama pants, and black boots.

Butterfield's parents, Stewart Butterfield and Caterina Fake, cofounded the photo service Flickr together in 2004.

They were married from 2001 until 2007, reported the New York Post, and sold Flickr to Yahoo! for an estimated $30 million in 2005.

Their divorce was finalized in 2007, the same year Mint Butterfield was born, according to the Post.

Stewart Butterfield cofounded Slack in 2013 with Cal Henderson. He left the company in December 2022, Business Insider reported.

He is worth $1.6 billion, according to an estimate by Forbes.

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Harvey Weinstein's sex crimes conviction was overturned Thursday by the New York Court of Appeals, which found that he hadn't gotten a fair trial.

In its 4-3 decision, the appeals court found Weinstein's trial judge had erred in allowing accusers to testify who were not listed in the criminal charges against him, The New York Times reports.

Manhattan District Attorney Alvin L. Bragg must now decide whether to retry the case.

Weinstein's lawyer Arthur Aidala, who represented the ex-movie mogul in his New York appeal, did not immediately respond to a request for comment by Business Insider.

This is a developing story.

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• Ukraine is getting a new type of laser-guided missile from the UK, the Paveway IV.
• While "pretty old," they can do good damage against poorly-defended Russia targets, an expert said.
• Ukraine probably won't risk its bomber planes taking on heavier defenses, with them, though.

Ukraine is about to get a new type of laser-guided bomb that can wreck "soft" Russian targets, a military analyst said.

Britain is giving Ukraine a cache of Paveway IV bombs as part of its latest aid delivery, its defense ministry told Business Insider.

Paveway IV bombs are dropped from planes, and weigh in at around 500 lbs. They have laser guidance that means they can operate even in bad weather, or through enemy smoke screens, per the UK's Royal Air Force.

While the bombs are "pretty old," they are "high precision" weapons and a "very" reliable technology, Sergej Sumlenny, founder of the German think tank European Resilience Initiative Center, told BI.

"This is a good weapon against soft targets — that means air defenses, radars, inventory, depots, and communication centers will be the primary target," he said.

Such devices are significant, he said, because they could compete against Russia's gliding bombs.

Russia has used gliding bombs to devastating effect against Ukrainian positions, pounding its defenses and opening the way for Russian troops to make advances on the front lines.

But the Paveway IV bombs, in conjunction with other high-precision weapons Ukraine has, would be "very" effective if Ukraine were to mount the same kind of operation against Russia, Sumlenny said.

James Black, assistant director of defense research at RAND Europe, had a different take.

He told BI that while the bombs will likely be of "some" use, their range is an issue.

Ukraine's air force is small and much less advanced than Russia's, making it hard for Ukraine to risk them on bombing raids where Russia could shoot them down.

Black said the Paveways are "unlikely to have a transformational impact on the battlefield."

He said that the US-supplied longer-range ATACMS munitions that are heading to Ukraine in the latest package approved by Congress will be of "much greater" value.

He said they can target a wider range of Russian targets and do not rely on navigating enemy air defenses or risking manned aircraft.

Justin Bronk, a Russia and air warfare expert at the UK's Royal United Services Institute, said that Ukraine probably wouldn't be able to make much use of the laser targeting because it lacks the supporting equipment to go with it.

Aircraft dropping them would likely have to do so as far away as possible, limiting their precision he said.

Besides Paveway IV bombs, the UK's aid package to Ukraine, which amounts to some $625 million, includes about 400 vehicles, 1,600 missiles, and four million rounds of small-arms ammo.

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• Sage Vegan Bistro in Los Angeles is transitioning to serve meat, dairy, and eggs.
• The chef said she thought a vegan diet was best for the environment, but has since changed her mind.
• The restaurant will instead support regenerative farming practices — a move condemned by PETA.

The chef of a Los Angeles vegan restaurant announced that her restaurant is rebranding and transitioning to serving meat, dairy, and eggs.

Chef Mollie Engelhart said that she thought a vegan diet was best when she started Sage Vegan Bistro, but has now changed her mind.

Renamed the Sage Regenerative Kitchen & Brewery, the restaurant will instead focus on supporting regenerative farming practices, Engelhart said in an Instagram video.

"That means we will be shifting from an all-plant-based menu to a high-quality protein from only the highest quality, most integrity, regenerative farms," she said.

The restaurant, which opened in Echo Park in 2011, before launching branches in Culver City and Pasadena, has cultivated a legion of plant-loving customers.

But the Los Angeles Times reported that the revamped menu will soon feature ingredients like beef, bison, fried eggs, and other non-vegan products, starting next month.

"To some, this may seem shocking or upsetting, but if you look at the last seven years of my life, and as I moved into regenerative farming to serve the highest quality food to my customers, I started to learn so much about soil and nature," Engelhart said in the Instagram post.

In the LA Times interview, she said: "I think that the next step forward is regenerative agriculture, and for that to move forward it needs to be in the zeitgeist, it needs to be in our everyday conversations."

"This is my way to contribute to that, to give people options," she added.

Regenerative farming aims to address the climate crisis by restoring degraded soils and sequestering carbon, though opinions on its environmental impact vary.

A 2022 academic review by William H. Schlesinger, former president of the Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies, found that practices associated with regenerative farming are not likely to lead to a "large net sequestration of organic carbon in soils."

Schlesinger also noted that some practices even result in their own carbon dioxide emissions to the atmosphere.

Engelhart told the LA Times that she was being "vulnerable" in announcing the move, and that she had braced herself for the "vitriol" to come.

That pushback came quickly.

PETA, the animal-rights charity, accused the restaurant in an Instagram post of "serving greenwashed and humane-washed meat, dairy, and eggs," and described the shift as a betrayal to animals.

"On Earth Day, no less!" the post added.

Vegan restaurateur Jayde Nicole, in a comment on Instagram, described the shift as "horrifying," while Hannah Weseloh, a vegan influencer, likened the announcement to "mourning a death."

Englehart defended her choice, and said she timed the announcement for Earth Day because "we're doing this shift for humanity and the earth."

She also told the LA Times that financial considerations influenced her decision, with the newspaper reporting that the restaurants had not been profitable since 2020.

"My restaurants have been really struggling, like so many restaurants post-pandemic," Engelhart said.

According to the LA Times, several formerly all-vegan restaurants in LA have shifted to incorporating meat in recent years, citing financial factors, with many others closing their doors entirely.

Sage Regenerative Kitchen & Brewery did not immediately respond to Business Insider's request for comment.

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• US real GDP rose at an annualized rate of 1.6% in the first quarter.
• That's far below the 3.4% increase in last year's fourth quarter.
• While a slowdown was expected for the first quarter, the forecast was 2.5%.

Amid US job growth above forecasts and accelerating inflation, the US economy in the first quarter of this year slowed more than expected.

A news release from the Bureau of Economic Analysis out Thursday showed US real gross domestic product rose at an annualized rate of 1.6%. That's less than the forecast of 2.5%. The advance estimate for the first quarter shows real GDP had continued to slow: Real GDP rose at an annualized rate of 4.9% in the third quarter of 2023 before rising at a cooler annualized rate of 3.4% in the fourth quarter.

"Overall, US economic activity remains resilient, powered by consumers' ongoing ability and willingness to spend, even if they are being more scrutinous in the face of high prices," Gregory Daco, the chief economist for EY, said in written commentary ahead of the latest GDP reading. "A robust labor market along with positive real wage growth continues to provide a solid foundation to consumer outlays. Meanwhile, businesses are focusing on high return-on-investment projects and productivity-enhancing investments in an elevated cost and interest rate environment."

The labor market has seen job openings cool but also has experienced strong monthly nonfarm payroll growth. The labor market is more Goldilocks-like where it's not super hot but also not super cold.

Plus, inflation has been heating up; March's year-over-year percent change in the consumer price index was higher than the forecast. That change was 3.5%, greater than the 3.4% forecast or the previous 3.2% rise in February.

"Looking ahead, we see the economy gently cooling as slower labor demand, easing wage growth, stubborn inflation, and tight credit conditions constrain private sector activity," Daco said. "In particular, we note that if inflation proves to be stickier than anticipated, the downside risk to the economy from reduced real income growth, a 'higher for longer' Fed stance and tightening financial conditions would be notable."

This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.

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• Russia vetoed a UN resolution led by the US and Japan to prevent a space arms race.
• The resolution aimed to head off the deployment of nuclear weapons in orbit.
• US intelligence suggests that Russia is developing a satellite that could carry a nuclear device.

Russia vetoed a US- and Japan-led UN resolution aimed at stopping a nuclear arms space race.

Russia used its Security Council veto on Wednesday to block a resolution calling on countries to work toward the "prevention of an arms race in outer space."

The resolution also sought to reaffirm existing treaties that oblige countries "not to place in orbit around the Earth any objects carrying nuclear weapons or any other kinds of weapons of mass destruction," per the UN press service.

Thirteen member countries voted for the resolution, with China abstaining.

Russia was the only country to vote against it.

Russia's move comes amid concerns in the White House that Russia is developing a satellite capable of carrying a nuclear device.

In February, US lawmakers were reportedly briefed on intelligence about the threat.

Soon after, Russian President Vladimir Putin said he had no intention of putting nuclear arms in space.

The White House reacted to Wednesday's vote, saying: "We have heard President Putin say publicly that Russia has no intention of deploying nuclear weapons in space. If that were the case, Russia would not have vetoed this resolution."

"What could you possibly be hiding?" US Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield said. "It's baffling. And it's a shame."

However, Russia's UN Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia called the resolution "politicized," and said it didn't go far enough, the Associated Press reported.

Russia and China had proposed an amendment to the resolution calling on all states to prevent weapons and any threat or use of force in outer space "for all time."

Nebenzia also accused the US of blocking a long-standing treaty proposal from Russia and China barring weapons in space, per the AP.

In an interview with Arms Control Today magazine ahead of the vote, US Assistant Secretary of State Mallory Stewart was critical of such proposals for being vague and unenforceable.

"We've seen where countries propose treaties, such as the prevention of placement of weapons in outer space treaty that Russia and China have pushed for many years, without even an accepted common definition of what a 'weapon' in space is," she said.

Following the vote, the US Ambassador to the UN, Robert Wood, said that the resolution would have "helped prevent the catastrophic consequences of a nuclear detonation in space."

"Needless to say, we are incredibly disappointed by the result of today's vote," he added.

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• Costco's new CFO won't inherit his predecessor's parking spot, as he hasn't served enough time there yet.  
• Costco is known for the value it places on high employee retention.
• Some employees have stayed at the company for over 30 years, and several execs started out working on the shop floor.

Costco's CFO, Robert Galanti, retired in March after 40 years at the company, but the new CFO won't be so quick to fill in his parking spot.

Reserved parking spaces at Costco are based on tenure rather than seniority, The Wall Street Journal reported. So despite being in the C-suite, new CFO Gary Millerchip will have to park his car across the street.

It's an old-school way of doing things, Galanti told The Journal. "We're a little quirky, but that's our culture and it works for us," he said.

Galanti, a fierce defender of Costco's $1.50 hot dog combo, is one of the many emoployees to hold a decadeslong tenure at Costco.

The company lets its retail employees work their way to the top. CEO Ron Vachris started at the company as a forklift driver and is set to earn around $11.5 million this year in the top spot — he's only the third person ever to hold this job at the company.

Other executives also began their Costco careers on the warehouse floor.

Todd Thull, who is listed as a VP at the company on his LinkedIn profile, started as a forklift driver 44 years ago.

Another employee, John Conlon started off "pushing carts at the original Costco" back in 1987, his LinkedIn profile reads. Now, 37 years later, he's worked his way up to a director role at the company's headquarters.

At least 10 other employees based at the company headquarters in Issaquah, Washington have worked there for over 30 years, according a search of LinkedIn profiles.

Business Insider was not able to independently verify the current employment of these workers.

The warehouse club boasts some of the highest employee satisfaction ratings among big retailers. In 2021, Costco raised its minimum wage to $17 per hour, far above the federal minimum hourly wage of $7.25.

Former Costco CEO W. Craig Jelinek advocated for a higher minimum wage in front of Congress in 2021. He said that it's "good business" to cut down on the employee turnover rate.

"We're certainly not perfect, but we try to take care of our employees, because they play such a significant role in our success," Jelinek said.

Business Insider contacted Costco for comment but didn't immediately hear back.

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