3k-5k is a lot of money. But 3k-5k is not a lot of money to spend on a paint job.
Yeah, if you're going to be tight about it, don't bother with the respray, just get the panels done that need it.
When I had a Silvia I had it resprayed for $1600, but they used acrylic paint and didn't clear coat, so you get what you pay for.