There are plenty of choices in the Mutual Fund Bond category, but where should you start your research? Well, one fund that might be worth investigating is Vanguard NY Long-Term Tax-Exempt Investor (VNYTX). VNYTX possesses a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 1 (Strong Buy), which is based on nine forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.History of Fund/ManagerVNYTX is a part of the Vanguard Group family of funds, a company based out of Malvern, PA. Vanguard NY Long-Term Tax-Exempt Investor debuted in April of 1986. Since then, VNYTX has accumulated assets of about $387.94 million, according to the most recently available information. Adam Ferguson is the fund's current manager and has held that role since June of 2013.PerformanceInvestors naturally seek funds with strong performance. VNYTX has a 5-year annualized total return of -0.1% and it sits in the top third among its category peers. But if you are looking for a shorter time frame, it is also worth looking at its 3-year annualized total return of -3.04%, which places it in the top third during this time-frame.When looking at a fund's performance, it is also important to note the standard deviation of the returns. The lower the standard deviation, the less volatility the fund experiences. Over the past three years, VNYTX's standard deviation comes in at 7.01%, compared to the category average of 12.01%. Over the past 5 years, the standard deviation of the fund is 5.81% compared to the category average of 10.31%. This makes the fund less volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.With a beta of 0.96, this fund is less volatile than a broad market index of fixed income securities. Taking this into account, VNYTX has a negative alpha of -0.31, which measures performance on a risk-adjusted basis.RatingsInvestors should also consider a bond's rating, which is a grade ( 'AAA' to 'D' ) given to a bond that indicates its credit quality. With this letter scale in mind, VNYTX has 64.06% in high quality bonds rated at least 'AA' or higher, while 34.28% are of medium quality, with ratings of 'A' to 'BBB'. The fund has an average quality of AA, and focuses on high quality securities.ExpensesFor investors, taking a closer look at cost-related metrics is key, since costs are increasingly important for mutual fund investing. Competition is heating up in this space, and a lower cost product will likely outperform its otherwise identical counterpart, all things being equal. In terms of fees, VNYTX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.17% compared to the category average of 0.79%. So, VNYTX is actually cheaper than its peers from a cost perspective.This fund requires a minimum initial investment of $3,000, and each subsequent investment should be at least $1.Bottom LineOverall, Vanguard NY Long-Term Tax-Exempt Investor ( VNYTX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively strong performance, average downside risk, and lower fees, this fund looks like a good potential choice for investors right now.This could just be the start of your research on VNYTXin the Mutual Fund Bond category. Consider going to www.zacks.com/funds/mutual-funds for additional information about this fund, and all the others that we rank as well for additional information. If you are more of a stock investor, make sure to also check out our Zacks Rank, and our full suite of tools we have available for novice and professional investors alike. Zacks Names "Single Best Pick to Double" From thousands of stocks, 5 Zacks experts each have chosen their favorite to skyrocket +100% or more in months to come. From those 5, Director of Research Sheraz Mian hand-picks one to have the most explosive upside of all. It’s a little-known chemical company that’s up 65% over last year, yet still dirt cheap. With unrelenting demand, soaring 2022 earnings estimates, and $1.5 billion for repurchasing shares, retail investors could jump in at any time. This company could rival or surpass other recent Zacks’ Stocks Set to Double like Boston Beer Company which shot up +143.0% in little more than 9 months and NVIDIA which boomed +175.9% in one year.Free: See Our Top Stock and 4 Runners Up >>Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report Get Your Free (VNYTX): Fund Analysis ReportTo read this article on Zacks.com click here.Zacks Investment Research