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I don't know about Clovis, but I have lived in Yuma and still return at least once a year to visit the in-laws. Yuma is HOT in the summer, even by my standards, and I grew up in S.Az. It is very mild in the winter. It is a mid-to-small sized city... slightly less than 200K population... and the population definitely goes up in the winter with the visiting snowbirds. There is a lot of agriculture, esp. lettuce (if you eat lettuce in the winter it probably came from Yuma). It is on the delta of the Gila and Colorado rivers, which explains the agriculture (lots of irrigation). There is barely any rain, maybe 2 inches a year. It is sunny every day. There is a lake and some mountains nearby, and as mentioned it is an easy drive to San Diego (about 2.5 hours). It is fairly close to Phoenix also (about 3 hrs). It is definitely a border town with border problems (drugs, a million different law enforcement agencies, etc). If you want to leave in any direction you will be subject to a customs checkpoint. It is close to San Luis, MX (45 mins due south) but even closer to Algodones, MX to the southwest (about 15 minutes). Lots of people cross over to shop and buy cheap medicine at the pharmacies there. There is a new mall (inexplicably, outdoor), with lots of nice shops and a big movie theater. If you are looking for a lot of big-town excitement you won't find it in Yuma, but it has a rough charm of its own. There is the historical territorial prison, the yearly county fair, the river (more like a creek now), lots of places to offroad, and lots of good restaurants (you MUST try Chile Pepper. I swear it's addictive). On account of the marine base and the Yuma Proving Grounds (army) there is a noticeable military presence in town as well.
Why are you chosing between Yuma and Clovis? Retirement? Jobs? It would help to know what your interests are and your reason for moving to give you more specific advice.
Zizzer, thanks for all the info. There is a possibility my husband will be offered an awesome career opportunity in the near future. We may be able to choose between Yuma and Clovis for the location. Nothing is certain, but I like to be prepared. I've done some research, and it seems my list of pros and cons are pretty equal with both locations. Unfortunately, I've never been to either city or general area. Btw, we have 4 kids and 2 dogs.
If you totally dislike cold winters, anyone would choose southern Arizona. I've been through Yuma a few times, and the litmus test was July 15th one year. I thought i was going to die that day, high temperature was 118. But that's Arizona for ya.
Yuma is also close to sea level, and you can tell the humidity, at least I can. Like Zizzer said, border patrol checks are common, and all you have to do is look at the map to see how close the border is. I've taken Interstate 8 all the way to San Diego and the border is only a few hundred feet away from the interstate in several sections of the road.. A lot of people like it down there though, and as Zizzer again comments, a lot of snowbirds fill the town up in the winter. A couple of my neighbors go down there and have for years.
I worked at Yuma Proving Grounds for a few months about 15 years ago. I imagine it still gets hot there. For me it was a matter of career. I have very little experience with Clovis, I have been there and Canon AFB a few times. I would go back to Yuma under the appropriate wages and conditions. But it is going to be a personal decision for you and your family.
Yes, it is hot...118 in July is right on target... but humid? No.... it is sea level, but it is not near the sea! You just adjust habits. During the summer, it is best to stay inside late morning through the afternoon, and of course drink plenty of water (and make sure those dogs get plenty of water too!). Likewise if you lived somewhere cold and snowy, you would stay inside during the winter... It depends on what kind of weather you like and how you learn to live with it.
My husband grew up there, and has a lot of family there.... like any kids anywhere, they'll tell you there is "nothing to do," no matter where they are, although I don't think that's strictly true . We taught school there, and kids had lots of sports and clubs to be involved in. There are sand dunes to the west and many people enjoy going there, with their kids, to ride ATVs and such. Hunting is popular with some people (not me, but to each his own). There are public pools that are great in the summer. It is AZ of course so a lot of people have their own backyard pools as well.
The eastern suburbs (known locally as "the foothills" area) are expanding greatly. There are lots of new homes and neighborhoods out there and there is a new high school with a very nice campus (just a couple years old) out there called Gila Ridge I think, as well as a few good elementary and middle schools. In between the foothills and town is where the new mall is. There are several established private schools in town as well (Yuma Catholic comes to mind, but there are others). It is AZ, so public education is not really it's strong point, but as one of many people I know who are products of AZ public education, I can say it is totally possible to go through the public schools and wind up a happy, healthy and successful adult.
There is not really a university in town, unless you count NAU-Yuma, although I think that U of A was going to have a small extended campus there? not sure... There is Arizona Western, a community college, that NAU-Yuma shares a campus with. They seem to offer mostly practical degrees for the local economy (law enforcement, teaching, nursing)--you'll be disappointed if you were planning to work on a degree in 19th Century English literature...
We no longer live there but my husband has younger relatives and also his friends now have school-age kids, and they all seem pretty happy. Many of his friends left and later moved back.
Downsides, like I said... the heat is pretty impressive, there is the whole bordertown drugs/violence problem, and there aren't a lot of "big city" amenities (high-end shopping, concerts, clubs, or whatnot). All that stuff will bother different people to different degrees, depending on how you feel about weather, where you live/hang- out in town, and what you like to do for fun.
And, Yuma has some of the best Mexican food anywhere... I still have cravings for it!
Let me know if you have any specific questions.
Ok--now it's someone else's turn to give you some information about Clovis! Any takers?
Yuma is generally very dry (I know about dry, I live in the Grand Junction, Colo. area). I should have finished that sentence a tad better as on that trip it was raining to beat the band and the temp STILL was 118. I should have included that in there and failed to. Just that particular time it was humid. But water is not far as the Gulf Of California is south of there abut 80 miles south, maybe a little further.
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. We taught school there, and kids had lots of sports and clubs to be involved in. There are sand dunes to the west and many people enjoy going there, with their kids, to ride ATVs and such. Hunting is popular with some people (not me, but to each his own). There are public pools that are great in the summer. It is AZ of course so a lot of people have their own backyard pools as well. 
