@jeremystroup wrote:
OR do i have to be married by the end of 2019 AND file jointly next year?
It does not work that way, exactly. While only one spouse has to meet the ownership requirement, each spouse must meet the residence requirement individually (for a married couple filing jointly) to get the full exclusion.
See https://www.irs.gov/publications/p523#en_US_2018_publink10008952
