The town's county court was highlighted in the national press as having the fourth highest percentage increase of repossessions in the country.

But the court covers all of High Peak – not just Buxton – and between April to June this year saw just 42 repossession cases, although this represents an increase of 75 per cent.

National figures revealed the number of court cases launched to take back people's homes in the second quarter of 2008 hit its highest level for over 15 years.

The number of repossession orders made nationally by the courts has increased dramatically. A total of 39,078 court cases were launched and 28,658 orders were granted, an increase of 24 per cent on the same period in 2007.

High Peak Conservative Parliamentary Candidate Andrew Bingham said: "The national figures are worrying, but the thing that really concerned me was the local impact.

"When I studied the list of areas hardest hit, Buxton court was listed as having the fourth highest increase in new repossession cases in the country – increasing by 75 per cent. Times are getting tougher, costs are rising and people are struggling to make ends meet.

"These figures show that here in the High Peak we too are beginning to feel the effects of Gordon Brown's economic spend now and pay later culture."

However, Howard Crowther, owner of Howard Crowther Estates, expressed surprise at the figures: "I have not come across one repossession", he explained. "Normally companies get in touch with me about it."

While he knew of clients who had had properties repossessed, or were in the process of being repossessed, these had been in the buy-to-let market.

Mr Crowther said he believed much of the doom and gloom about the housing market had been driven by the national media, and that locally the housing market was "ticking along".

"People still have to move house; either it's families getting bigger, or you have got people relocating with their jobs, or couples divorcing," he added.

"Our experience so far this year is that if people are prepared to be sensible over prices they have got a good chance of selling."