The week's best financial advice

Here are three of the week's top pieces of financial advice, gathered from around the web:

Murky tech investments

Mutual funds "have been loading up" on shares of high-growth startups like Uber, Dropbox, and Airbnb, said Kirsten Grind at The Wall Street Journal. But with fears of a second tech bubble looming, the Securities and Exchange Commission is beginning to question money managers about how funds are valuing these hard-to-price holdings. Shares in private startups aren't traded publicly, so mutual fund firms must estimate what those shares are worth, frequently reporting different prices for the same company. Millions of investors are now exposed to these unpredictable startup shares, with Fidelity, T. Rowe Price, and BlackRock among the biggest money managers investing in private tech companies. The good news: Funds are only allowed to hold 15 percent of their assets in hard-to-sell securities, which include private-company shares.

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Remixing portfolio rules

"Years ago, managing your investment portfolio was pretty simple," said Jeff Reeves at USA Today. Invest 60 percent in stocks, 40 percent in bonds, and rebalance once a year. But more and more, financial advisers believe the old 60/40 formula isn't just outdated, "but downright dangerous." Historically low interest rates have pulverized bond yields, and Americans' lengthening life spans demand more robust performance to fund a decades-long retirement. Advisers "differ greatly on what the proper mix is," but some suggest broadening the definition of "bonds" to include other income-producing investments, like dividend-paying stocks. In general, having more exposure to stocks, even in your 50s and 60s, increasingly looks like a smart move.

Scrounging up a down payment

"Home prices are on the rise, making it harder for buyers to cobble together a 20 percent down payment," Kathryn Vasel said at CNN​. In order to secure the average four-bedroom, two-bathroom home — today worth $302,632 — buyers need to pony up $60,526, and that's before closing costs. But there are options for homebuyers without enough savings in the bank. The FHA backs mortgages that require as little as 3.5 percent down for borrowers with good credit. The Department of Veterans Affairs guarantees loans for former service members, and the Department of Agriculture has a loan program to aid home ownership in rural areas. If you borrow from a retirement account, "use caution to avoid paying penalties."