How Millennial Newlyweds Paid Off $100K Debt And Took On A Side Hustle

They’d racked up student loans. And then some credit card debt from professional licensing exams, plus a celebratory post-doctorate cruise. And one day, newlyweds Andrew and Veronica Kaslewicz of Pittsburgh, now both 28, found themselves saddled with more than $100,000 in debt and no good way to pay it off. One of the problems was that Andrew didn't want to work full-time.

“We demand more from our time than just money,”  Andrew said. “We witnessed an abnormal amount of family tragedies in the past few years, and those events re-aligned our ambitions.” Their goal: To spend more time with each other, and less at work. Today, they pull in a combined $150,000 from their jobs as a nurse (Andrew) and a pharmacist (Veronica), plus side hustles worth $10,000-$15,000 each year.

They realized they needed to conquer their mountain of debt, which included:

• Andrew’s $78,000 student loans at various interest rates
• Veronica’s $18,500 in student loans
• $5,000 in credit card debt
• $15,000 for their wedding

But before they moved forward, they went backward. Andrew decided he didn’t want to be a nurse after he’d completed his training, and took a series of odd jobs after graduation--working for minimum wage in a bowling alley, an antique shop, and a metal shop—before he realized he wasn’t getting anywhere.

“That didn't help our financial situation at all because he could have been earning a nice nursing salary that whole year and building up a savings,” Veronica said.

They got mad, and then they got smart and started saving

One day Andrew’s uncle, an antiques dealer, explained to him that gold and silver were also money. “That was the spark that ignited Andrew's money passion, a simple realization that money could be obtained by other means than working for someone else ,” Veronica said, “It sounds simple, but working for someone else was all we knew at the time.”

Andrew read everything he could about money and how it works. “He began getting angry at how the financial system worked against us, encouraging lending and spending to keep people in debt, and decided that he wanted out. He wanted freedom. I was kind of just along for the ride at first, then I became just as passionate as him,” Veronica said.

The Kaslewiczs started figuring out how to maximize their opportunities to spend, make and save money, and started a blog they call Secondhand Millionaires to document their journey and inspire others. Their niche: buying jewelry and antiques from garage sales, estate sales, and auctions, re-selling those items on eBay , and investing the profits. The name “Second Hand Millionaires” has two meanings: “We flip used, second-hand items for a profit, but the reason we do it is to get our life time—our seconds—back in return,” Veronica said.

It took two years to pay off the student loans, credit card, wedding, and car. In less than a year and a half, they’ve paid down more than half their mortgage.

Here are a few examples of how they turned around their money habits:

• They became creative with their travel. They used credit card promotions to their advantage to fly  to Hawaii and first-class to Japan, for free. They then paid the cards off immediately so they didn’t accrue interest.
• They took calculated risks that could have gone horribly wrong (but didn’t): Andrew took a forbearance hiatus from paying his student loans. As the loans accumulated interest, the couple took the money they’d otherwise be paying out and played for short-term gains on the stock market, and won. When their brokerage account reached a certain balance, they’d pay off the highest-interest loans first and start all over again. “This method made us feel in control and helped us decide what was going to get paid when instead of handing all of the lenders small amounts monthly. The decision to do this wasn't all based in logic: emotions and maintaining control played a major role,” Veronica said. “It was certainly unconventional and some may even say risky, but when you view debt as an emergency like we do, you are willing to take the risks.”
• They saved half or more of their income by direct depositing it into a different bank, and in order to withdraw it, they needed to both sign a slip. “This was a lovely backstop to teach financial restraint because in the event of spending weakness, we could count on the other to say no,” Veronica said. They then increased their savings to 70% or “until it hurt.” “We promised ourselves we could have certain luxuries back after three months if we really missed or needed them, but so far, we're perfectly happy. We don't feel deprived at all. In fact, we feel more free.”
• They maxed out Veronica’s 401k at work; Andrew contributes the maximum to his Health Savings Account.
• They rarely, if ever, pay retail. “This has saved us thousands of dollars,” Veronica says. “We have found high quality furniture, decor, house necessities, designer clothes, and more for pennies on the dollar by doing a lot of our shopping at high-end garage sales and auctions.“
• They stopped impulse spending. Any time they would get an “itch” for an item, they waited three days to buy it and re-evaluated whether they still wanted or needed it. More than 90% of the time, they didn’t.
• They learned how to do things themselves: The Kaslewiczs learned how to make cosmetic fixes in their new home such as changing light fixtures, updating switches and outlets, re-insulating the attic, or re-finishing the hardwood floors. Not only did they save on contractor fees, but they added to the value of their home.

How they earned extra money

Andrew and Veronica realized that in order to move ahead, they’d need to create a side hustle—or two. They tapped knowledge from Andrew’s uncle about how to move precious metals. “We were terrible at first, but we had a wonderful, patient teacher. We went out to the local garage sales and estate sales every weekend for years, and became increasingly good at finding valuable jewelry that people sold to us for nothing,” Veronica said.

For example: They bought a gold necklace for 10 cents that they turned around for $85; an engagement ring for $75 that they sold for $450, and a flea market bargain serving platter that turned out to be worth $500 in sterling silver.

They also started selling used books at Amazon. “A few years back, we were at an enormous used book sale just for fun and there were a few people there with hand scanners connected to PDA devices. We asked one of them about their device, and it opened up a whole new world and another income stream,” Veronica said. “They were scanning the barcodes of books against Amazon's database, and the PDA would show them how much the book was worth. These people traveled all around, making their living by selling books on Amazon marketplace or trading them back into Amazon for gift cards. At a large book sale with thousands of books, you could make a week's paycheck in a few hours. We decided to give it a try, despite the computer program being $300 per year. I don't have exact numbers, but we made a few thousand dollars just on books in 2009 when we used that program to clean out a Border's Books liquidation sale.”

How they spend their cash

The couple used savings to pay $6,500 for a used car in cash when Andrew’s junker bit the dust. “This was hard for Andrew, because he thought he was going to be driving that $700 car well into his 90s! By having a healthy savings balance along with a strong investment account balance, we were able to avoid potential financial setbacks such as having to buy a new car unexpectedly and we were able to avoid needing a car loan,” Veronica said.

They bought their home in June of 2014 with a 15- year, $144,000 loan at 3.625%. They made extra payments and today, owe $65,000.

A financial professional would probably have other ideas on how they should have tackled their debt.  Still, their methods worked for them because of their strong emotions around money. “We know that financially, it isn’t a perfect move to pay off our house so quickly when we could likely be investing that money and earning a greater return on the investment than the interest on our mortgage,” Veronica said. “Andrew grew up watching his parents struggle with their mortgage, and paying off our mortgage is an emotional dragon-slaying for him. It’s about the peace of mind that comes from owning what you have, and not living in fear of losing a job or trying a new career path. We’ve done the math, but this is purely an emotional decision for us. We are getting back to investing in the stock market as our mortgage drops lower and lower. “

What they’d do differently

Veronica regrets being so frugal on things that really mattered—like renting an inexpensive but charming home that had no central heat and poor insulation. There was a weak little gas stove and they’d need to build fires when the temperature dropped. “Those two winters there were the worst! I felt like I was back in the 1800's on a farm somewhere, not in the middle of a city. It was quite a bonding experience, however, and we found that we are both much tougher than we ever knew,” Veronica said.

Andrew wishes he’d gone to community college instead of a private university, and also, he regrets fooling around during his year of odd jobs. He also is a little concerned about his own mindset in the wake of extreme saving: “Spending money is actually hard for me. Saving comes naturally. Writing those huge checks for the student loans and getting nothing in return was agonizing. I made my wife do it. I wanted it done, but I wanted it to happen behind my back, as strange as that sounds,” he said. “Another difficulty I have is staying in the moment. I have to continue to remind myself to enjoy today, enjoy the journey, instead of always focusing on the finish line of financial independence. Today is just as important if not more important than tomorrow, but it's sometimes hard for me to want to spend money on things right now.”

Their new goals

Now that they are debt-free, aside from their mortgage, they want to have their mortgage paid off by the time they’re 30,  phase out of their jobs to do freelance work and focus on their eBay business, and become financially independent by 35—and perhaps build their own auction house or invest in real estate.

“One of the most important lessons we've taken from this is that living below your means doesn't mean living below your worth, and what you own does not define who you are.” Veronica said.

You can follow their journey at www.secondhandmillionaires.com and on Twitter @2handmillionair.