What the FHA does via these "required repairs" is to force people to buy
homes which are more expensive than they can afford.

Many people can't afford to live in a "perfect home" or a brand new home.

The homes which lower income people can afford do not qualify for FHA loans
due to required repairs being needed!

Seems silly to me. I think the FHA should point out defects, yet make
repairs optional. Some people are good at making their own repairs and can
do so themselves for a lot less than paying a contractor or paying more for
a house up front, then paying interest on the additional cost for 30 years.

So you have a young handy type person renting and having to pay rent
increases each year. The young person can afford a "fixer-upper", but not a
home in perfect condition. It would make more sense for this person to buy
a fixer-upper, have a basically fixed payment for the rest of his life,
then he could slowly make repairs to his home.