First thank you for your service, I have family in the Navy & understand the sacrifice, so thank you for serving in the military!

Wealth, just like a successful marriage, requires sacrifice, effort, and investment.

Best to sacrifice a bit now to benefit greatly later. 

I had to get creative and be willing to take sacrifices.

However, these areas tend to sacrifice appreciation potential.Parts of the Kansas City metro are currently experiencing significant investment from major corporations.

I see a lot of people self-sacrifice, which I try to avoid along the journey to the top.If you aren't stuck on staying downtown Chicago, I'd consider finding a condo along the Blueline, but it would likely be in a smaller building (2-4 units. 

Any house hacking strategies involve the sacrifice of privacy and conveniency to a degree. 

I am totally okay with the fact that if you want to reap some benefit, you may have to make some personal sacrifices.

And you don't have to sacrifice your comfort just to invest!

While you're working to your 2025 goal, if you can, work and put your head down and save as much money as you can into a high-yield savings account and just build that up, be frugal, you can sacrifice for a little while.