I am aware of the capital gains exclusion.
We've lived in our current house for over 23 years, plus we have a deferral of capital gains from the house we owned prior to that for 10 years. Our current house was purchased before the current $250k/$500k capital gains exclusion was implemented. Back in the day, capital gains on house sales were deferred if you purchased the next house at or above the sale price of the first house.
We purchased our first house just at the edge of the real estate explosion in Silicon Valley. Add to that being located in one of the most desirable public school districts in California, and our house is ridiculously (over!) priced. The $500k exclusion will help, but it won't cover all of the capital gains.
Sounds like you made a good investment. You could turn it into a rental. Rent it for 3 years & then sell it. You would still get the exclusion for 2 of the last 5 years & make some money in the 3 rental years.