But to be fair
In the article I read, the journalists had surveyed rents in the area and found that the $1,600 he was paying was in line with the market. It's probably nothing so crude as making a "kept Congressman" of Boener.
I admit this is silly, but what went through my head when I read about it was a honey trap, complete with hidden cameras and microphones and two-way mirrors. Boener must really trust his lobbyist/landlord buddy to actually live in a building controlled by a lobbyist. What does that tell you?