Assessments

(a) Each Owner, whether it shall be so expressed in any deed or contract, is deemed to have agreed to the protective and restrictive covenants contained herein, and to pay to the Association all Assessments levied by the Association. Each Owner, by accepting a deed or recording a notice of purchaser’s interest or a contract for deed for any Lot within the Property, is deemed to covenant and agree to pay the Assessments levied by the Association.

(b) No Owner may exempt himself from liability for any Assessments or any other obligation under the Governing Documents by non-use of or abandonment of such Owner’s Lot, the Areas of Common Responsibility, or any other reason. The obligation to pay Assessments is a separate and independent covenant on the part of each Member in relation to a Lot.

(c) Notwithstanding anything stated in this Declaration to the contrary, neither the Declarant nor an Affiliate of the Declarant shall be required to pay Assessments on any Lot owned by the Declarant or its Affiliate unless the principal building/structure on such Lot is substantially completed and is being occupied for its intended purpose. “Affiliate” means a member of Declarant and/or an entity in which one or more members of the Declarant has an interest.

By purchasing a Lot, each Owner agrees that any filed Homestead Exemption does NOT apply to any Assessments owed to the Association.

The Association, by and through the Board, may levy any and all of the following types of Assessments:

(a) General Assessments. General Assessments include assessments to pay for the Association Expenses, and shall include an amount for reserves. In determining the amount to include for reserves, the Board shall take into account any buildings or structures to be added by the Association or reserve projects to be completed by the Association, and the number and nature of depreciable assets owned or partially or fully maintained by the Association, the expected life of each asset and their expected repair, replacement, and improvement cost; provided, however, the use of the reserves is not limited to these items. General Assessments shall be fixed by the Board and shall be assessed equally to the Owner of each Lot; provided however, if a Lot contains one or more residential apartment buildings or one or more commercial suite buildings, then a General Assessment shall be assessed to the Owner for each residential apartment or commercial suite in such buildings. General Assessments shall be paid quarterly, on January 1, April 1, July 1, and October 1 of each year.

(b) Special Assessments. Special Assessments may be levied from time to time to cover unexpected budget shortfalls, such as unforeseen repairs due to natural disasters or negligence; provided however, the reserves may also be used to cover unexpected budget shortfalls rather than levying a Special Assessment. Special Assessments may only be levied upon the Affirmative Vote of a Majority. Special Assessments shall be assessed equally to the Owner of each Lot; provided however, if a Lot contains one or more residential apartment buildings or one or more commercial suite buildings, then a Special Assessment shall be assessed to the Owner for each residential apartment or commercial suite in such buildings. Special Assessments shall be payable in such manner and at such times as determined by the Board, but no less than thirty (30) days after notice of the Special Assessment is provided to the Owners, and may be payable in installments extending beyond the fiscal year in which the Special Assessment is approved.

(c) Default Assessments. Default Assessments mean: (i) any fine or penalty imposed upon an Owner because of a violation of any provision of the Governing Documents; (ii) any cost or expense incurred by the Association as a result of an Owner’s or an Owner’s Invitee’s violation of any provision of the Governing Document; (iii) any cost or expense incurred by the Association as a result of damage caused by the intentional or negligent act or omission of an Owner or the Owner’s Invitee, and (iv) interest charged to the Owner. Default Assessments should be liberally construed. Default Assessments shall be payable in such manner and at such times as determined by the Board, but no less than thirty (30) days after notice of the Default Assessments is provided to the Owner.

(d) Community Transfer Assessments. Within ten (10) days after a Transfer of a Lot within the Starling Community, every Transferee shall pay to the Association a Community Transfer Assessment in an amount equal to $300.00 per principal dwelling building structure, ADU, residential apartment within an apartment building, commercial building/structure, and commercial suite within a commercial building. If more than one (1) Person purchases a Lot as tenants in common or as joint tenants, then together those Persons collectively owe the Community Transfer Assessment, although each Person shall be jointly and severally liable for the entire Community Transfer Fee.

(1) Definitions. For the purposes of this Section 3.3(d), the following terms are defined as set forth below.

(a) “Person” does not include a Person who holds title to a Lot merely as security for a mortgage, or a successive Personal Representative or a successive Trustee, or the Association.

(b) “Transfer.” Transfer means a conveyance of a fee simple interest in a Lot, whether for consideration, as a gift, pursuant to a will, as a result of foreclosure, pursuant to a court order, pursuant to a tax lien, or any other Transfer of the Lot wherein title to the Lot is transferred to a new Person. “Transfer” does not include a conveyance to a Declarant’s Affiliate unless the Declarant’s Affiliate intends at the time of the Transfer to occupy the Lot for its intended purpose.

(c) “Transferee.” Transferee (i.e., “Buyer”) means and includes all parties to whom any interest passes by a Transfer, and each party included in the term “Transferee” shall have joint and several liability for all obligation of the Transferee under this Section 3.3(d).

(d) “Transferor.” Transferor (i.e., “Seller”) means and includes all parties from whom any interest passed by a Transfer, and each party included in the term “Transferor” shall have joint and several liability for all obligations of the Transferor under this Section 3.3(d).

(2) Reports. With payment of the Community Transfer Fee, the Transferee shall make a written report to the Board on a form prescribed by the Board, fully describing the Transfer, the names of the parties thereto, and such other information as the Board may reasonably require.

With the notice of the annual meeting of the Association, the Board shall present to the Members a proposed budget of the estimated income and expenses for the Association for the coming fiscal year. So long as the General Assessments are not increased more than 15% over the amount of each such General Assessments for the preceding year, the Board is not required to obtain Member approval to adopt the budget. If there is an increase in General Assessments over 15% from the preceding year, the Members shall approve, amend, or reject the proposed budget at the annual meeting of the Association. If no budget is approved by either the Board or the Members, respectively, then the budget last approved shall remain in effect until a new budget is approved.

(a) Any Assessment not paid within thirty (30) days after the due date shall be delinquent and shall incur a fine equal to 10% of the delinquent Assessment. Any Assessment that is still not paid on each anniversary date of the due date shall incur an additional fine equal to 10% of the delinquent Assessment.

(b) In the event an Assessment becomes delinquent, the Association may take any or all of the following actions: (i) record a lien in the Public Record against the Owner’s Lot, setting forth the name of the Owner, the legal description of the Lot, and the Assessments owed to the Association, and charge a fee and actual expenses for the recording of the lien; (ii) subject to Section 2.9(t), bring an action at law to collect all Assessments owed and/or foreclose the lien against the Lot; (iii) apply any deposits held by the Association to the amount due; (iv) suspend the Owner’s voting privileges; and (v) exercise any other remedy permitted under the Declaration or at law or equity. Each Assessment may be recovered by suit for a money judgment by the Association without foreclosing or waiving any lien securing the same or may be recovered in any foreclosure, or both. The remedies expressed herein are cumulative and not exclusive, and the Association may take any action permitted under this Declaration or Montana law to collect the Assessments owed to the Association.

(c) The recording of this Declaration constitutes record notice and perfection of a lien of the Association on all Lots. No further recordation or filing of any lien is required. The Board may, in its discretion, record the lien in the Public Record. The priority of the Association’s lien shall be determined pursuant to Section 3.6 and shall not be dependent upon the recording or filing date of any lien recorded in the Public Record. The Board, acting on behalf of the Association, shall have the power to bid (which may be a bid on credit, up to and including the amount secured by the lien) for the Lot at a foreclosure sale, and to acquire and hold, lease, mortgage, and convey the same. During the period a Lot is owned by the Association following foreclosure, (i) no right to vote shall be exercised on behalf of the Lot, (ii) no Assessment shall be assessed or levied on the Lot, and (iii) each other Lot shall be charged, in addition to its usual General Assessments and Special Assessments, its equal pro rata share of the General Assessments and Special Assessments that would have been charged to or payable by such Lot had it not been acquired by the Association.

The lien under this Article 3 shall be superior to all other liens, except for tax and assessment liens and a first mortgage or trust indenture of record if such first mortgage or trust indenture is recorded in the Public Record prior to the Association’s lien being recorded in the Public Record.

The amount of any Assessment payable under this Article 3 shall be a joint and several obligation to the Association of such Owner and such Owner’s heirs, estates, devisees, personal representatives, successors, and assigns, and any Person acquiring fee simple title to a Lot (except the Association) shall be jointly and severally liable with the former owner of the Lot for all such amounts which had accrued and were payable at the time of the acquisition of the title or interest by such Person, without prejudice to such Person’s right to recover any such amounts paid from the former Owner.

Upon written request, the Association shall furnish to an Owner or such Owner’s title or mortgage company written verification of the amount of such Assessments owing and whether the Owner has paid such Assessments.

Owners who own units subject to a condominium or townhome declaration and/or bylaws may also be required to pay additional assessments to a condominium or townhome association. Payment of condominium or townhome assessments does not alleviate or offset the Assessments owed pursuant to this Declaration.