This article critically examines how Community Sponsorship programmes redistribute responsibility for refugee support, particularly housing, from the state to private actors. Drawing on qualitative research in Ireland, it argues that outsourcing housing provision to sponsors can deepen refugee dependency, expose them to unequal power relations, and create risks of exploitation within private rental markets. The authors contend that to ensure equity and accountability, states, not sponsors, should retain primary responsibility for sourcing housing within community sponsorship frameworks.