EXHIBIT 99.2

NEWS RELEASE


                   CENDANT CORPORATION COMPLETES TENDER OFFER
                             FOR JACKSON HEWITT INC.


         Stamford, CT and Parsippany,  NJ, January 6, 1998 - Cendant Corporation
(NYSE:  CD)  announced  today that it has  completed  its  tender  offer for all
outstanding  shares of Jackson  Hewitt Inc.  (JTAX)  common  stock at $68.00 per
share. The tender offer expired at 5:00 p.m. yesterday.  Cendant Corporation has
been advised by the depositary for the tender offer that as of the expiration of
the offer  approximately  6,442,154  shares of JTAX  common  stock were  validly
tendered and not withdrawn  (including  86,674 shares  tendered  pursuant to the
procedures  for  guaranteed  delivery),   representing  95.6%  of  total  shares
outstanding.  As previously announced,  Cendant Corporation plans to acquire the
remaining Jackson Hewitt common stock at $68.00 per share through a cash merger,
expected to be completely shortly.

         Jackson Hewitt is the second largest tax preparation  service system in
the United States with locations in 41 states.  The company  franchises a system
of  approximately  2,050 offices that specialize in computerized  preparation of
federal and state individual income tax returns.  There are over 114 million tax
returns filed  annually in the United States with more than 50 percent  prepared
by a paid service.  The Jackson Hewitt system currently has a 1 percent share of
total tax returns.  H&R is the country's largest tax preparation  service with a
12 percent market share.

         Cendant  Corporation  is a global  provider  of consumer  and  business
services, and operates in three principal segments:  Membership, Travel and Real
Estate  Services.  In Membership  Services,  Cendant  provides access to travel,
shopping,  auto,  dining  and  other  services  through  more  than  73  million
memberships worldwide. In Travel Services,  Cendant is the leading franchisor of
hotels and rental car  agencies  worldwide,  the  premier  provider  of vacation
exchange  services and the second  largest  fleet  management  company.  In Real
Estate Services,  Cendant is the world's premier  franchisor of residential real
estate brokerage offices, a major provider of mortgage services to consumers and
a global  leader in  corporate  employee  relocation.  A pioneer in  interactive
shopping,  Cendant is a major  online  commerce  facilitator,  with more than $1
billion yearly sales through its netMarket(R) and other interactive services.