This is a slightly radical suggestion, but you might want to consider having the kid(s) immediately (while you're still living in the apartment). Not only is 2 bedrooms plenty big enough for an infant/toddler, but the extra exemptions and tax credits would let you save
that much more (and said tax credits are most valuable while your income is still relatively low).
See
http://rootofgood.com/make-six-figure-income-pay-no-tax/ for the details. The idea is that kids are worth $3900 in AGI reduction + $1000 in tax credit each, plus said AGI reduction could also help you qualify for things like the Saver's Credit and (if you're really frugal / low income) the Earned Income Credit, compounding the savings.
(Obviously, if you're not ready to have kids, don't have them just for the tax advantages... but if you want them anyway, it's a good reason not to wait.)
I bought my house before I found MMM and before I was comfortable with the stock market, so I was considering my purchase to be an investment. I just wish that someone had shown me that house prices don't inflate faster than inflation.
In aggregate, the housing market does not increase faster than inflation.
Individual properties, on the other hand, can vary (a lot).
For example, my house really
is an investment. Why? Because I bought a fixer-upper in a gentrifying neighborhood in late 2009, during the depths of the market crash, and used as much leverage as I could (I was required to have a bare-minimum $1500 cash at closing, and even that I borrowed from my parents). Five years later, it's more than doubled in value. If or when I decide to move, I'll be keeping it as a (very profitable) rental.
That's how you buy a house!
But the point is that (a) I was specifically evaluating it as an investment, not just a place to live, and (b) it's at least a little bit risky and speculative, like trying to pick stocks instead of buying an index fund. The situation 5 years ago made buying a no-brainer, but that's not usually the case (and even then, I screwed up -- if I'd bought a more expensive house in the next neighborhood over, I'd probably have an even higher return).
Buying a $0.5 mil place (that's barely affordable on $100k income) in a HCOL area, on the other hand, is a relatively terrible idea.