a slumlord that knows the government will be mailing checks to everyone would certainly have no qualms with raising the rent by a few hundred dollars to accommo

a slumlord that knows the government will be mailing checks to everyone would certainly have no qualms with raising the rent by a few hundred dollars to accommodate the extra income he knows his tenants have available He can try, but then he'd lose out to competing landlords who don't raise rents as much (or at all). It's like gas stations; owners know that people are willing to buy almost as much gas at $3/gallon as they are at $2. But when the price of oil falls, they can't just keep charging $3, because their competitors will charge less and take all their customers.