How about co-ed dorms in the section 8 housing area...
1. Build congressional billets in the DC area that are built to the same standard as barracks for enlisted military personnel. If congress wants to improve their digs, military housing has to be improved across the boards first. They can even have a day room for their little cocktail parties that are too big for their offices.
or,
2. Dock congressional salary, which I believe is already structured for maintenance of a second household, and make the stipend for DC housing a matter for the congressional district (for reps) and the state (for senators). No reason a congressman from Northern VA, South central PA, etc. should be getting the same stipend as somebody from Montana, when the former all live in easy commuting distance.
or,
Decentralize and/or eliminate all the federal offices in DC and have the agencies, contractors, lobbyists etc. move elsewhere. This will lower property values and then the poor wittle wepwesentatives can afford to pay rent without digging even deeper into taxpayer's pocket.