As of right now, I plan to retire in 6 years (at most), and move to Arizona.  Tired of everything rusting out within 30 seconds of bringing it home.
I an thinking of looking in the Northern region (not interested in any big city). Want to look for land or house that is not in a neighborhood as much as somewhat close to a small town.
Are there any particular regions or areas to steer clear of?  Plan to either have a well dug, or buy a place with a well (not interested in hauling water--as I see some places list).  I would be okay with all solar power, but not sure I could sell the wife.  And being for Florida, she is not interested in a harsh winter.
Thanks for any feedback.  I am thinking of taking a trip out there to start searching for places maybe next year.
Around Winslow maybe

How do you define harsh winter?  Most of NE AZ gets cold.

I live in Snowflake - which is about 65 miles south east of Winslow give or take 10 miles. Winslow is a pretty ugly place. You might find yourself pretty happy in the Prescott area. You'll get snow a couple times a year but it'll clear up in a day or two. You'll have some really nice winter days. Some cruddy. Its just big enough to have everything you want but not to big to have more people than you want (I think it is just about right, anyway). Winslow is ok. But it is known for some crime and low life's. I am not telling you to stay away, you'll be okay. I just wouldn't move there. Its only about 45 minutes from Flagstaff and you have the I40 right there which is nice. I can't speak for the western side of the state because I have spent very little time there. The Payson area is extremely nice. I think that would be more you kind of fit. Show Low area which is where I am at might give you more Snow and cold than your looking for but I think its pretty nice and Show Low is big enough.

I guess to put it in a list of suggestions to look at for you...

1. Prescott - It just has that nice mid range feel. Not to hot, not to cold. Not to big, not to small. Very close to pine forests and the desert.
2. Payson - Little smaller than Prescott area. Still big enough. Little colder than Prescott but I think maybe a little cooler in the summer too.
3. Show Low - Very similar to Payson area but less traffic, maybe a little bigger town than Payson. Lands Filthy cheap. Lots of nice little towns spotted around the area.
4. Winslow - I don't know, I wouldn't consider it but its certainly worth a look if you think your interested.

PRESCOTT

I'm in the Prescott area and find it has the right mix of rural/wilderness to town amenities. Four mild seasons and very varied terrain from grass prairies, granite dells, chaparral with juniper & pinion pines to full blown mountain forests. All of that can be found within a 30 minute drive from downtown Prescott.

Off road trails are plentiful and if you want to be in the "boonies" you can get there in less than an hour.
Very conservative county (Yavapai) with more gun stores than some states.

I'm on 5+ acres with a well & septic. I can shoot off my back porch yet be in downtown Prescott in < 30 minutes.
If you love winter then try Flagstaff, hate winter try the outskirts of the Phoenix area.
Access to medical care should be near the top of your list, especially when retired. That will limit your options to the larger towns/cities.
In my opinion the Winslow area is butt ugly and boring.  

What temperatures do you want to live in and how much are you looking to spend ?

Well, we get some 30s here, but only occasionally does it get freezing.
Looking to spend around $300K or so. It is just the wife and I, so we don't need much house.  Would like a bit of land, and not neighbors so close by.

To everyone else, I will check out Prescott area.
Thanks

How much land are you looking for?  Most builders aren't building anything other than big $$$ custom homes on land here anymore.  It is definitely worse in the Tucson and Phoenix metros, but in my research no area is exempt.  Land is becoming an expensive commodity out west.

$300K isn't a ton for Prescott, property values have been on the rise there for many years  and in six years I assume the values will be even higher.  A lot of Californians are moving into areas like Prescott and Flagstaff and sending the property values soaring.  I know several folks in Orange County, CA that are eyeing retirement in the Prescott area.

I am not really interested in living in a community or neighborhood, just where a town is within a reasonable drive--I looked at Prescott and looks to big and strictly organized for me. I an not looking at a great big house, either, do not want one at all.  I understand that prices will increase (one of the reasons that I am looking now, not later).
Thanks for the feedback

Check out Oracle AZ, it is about an hour north of Tucson, milder weather, has a decent mix of hippies/artists and conservative cowboys.  Water quality is a potential issue up there, so keep that in mind.  St. David and the Sierra Vista area are also places I'd think would meet your requirements.  Maybe look at Globe and Tonto Basin as well.

While I moved to the Prescott are a couple years ago and love it ( has for now a good balance of amenities and open land) it is growing quickly and looks to be pretty crowded within a few years. Great weather lots of shooting opportunities. As a medical practitioner one thing I will heavily stress is line up health care PRIOR to moving. Primary care providers are limited as are specialists. In my urgent care I have people show up every day that did not plan ahead and run out of medicine and can not find a primary or show up in the area only to find new primary care appointments run 2-3 months out.
May want to check out the Paulden area ( home of gunsite) about 20 minutes from Prescott but lots of open land.

Williams/Ashfork/Valle. Probably will have to haul your own water or have it delivered. The main well is at Bearizona. 6 to 7K elevation. Land is not real expensive now days.

From the sounds of it, I don't think OP's wife is going to like the winters there.

The part in bold and wanting land is a pretty big issue in much of AZ.  Most areas around a city or town are growing at a relatively high rate.  Areas that were rural 5-10 years ago are getting swallowed up as AZ's population grows.  Developers are buying land and building 2,000 square foot homes on 4,000 square foot lots and selling them all day every day.  "Horse properties" or houses with some land tend to be relatively large, more expensive and often in less desirable areas.

Basically when it comes to looking for a A) house on land B) near a town and C) relatively cheap, you're pretty much stuck choosing two.  If you find all three, you may end up somewhere with water issues.

My 'secret spots' to retire are Young and Wilcox. Medical care there sucks, but perfect little sleepy towns.

Eta: wouldn't call them towns. Very small population.

what about Benson/ St David  AZ?

Willcox?

I grew up in Safford / Thatcher  lots of open land. It sits at the base of  Mt Graham a 10'000' mountain.

You didn't really answer what temps you want to live in.
It makes a big difference.  Arizona has all sorts of temps which is basically a function of the altitude.
For example I grew up in the snow and never want to live in it again so our place is at 2500 feet.
Some people never want to live in temps over 100 so they live in places like Prescott.

If you want land without neighbors, then more than likely for that money your are talking about a manufactured house rather than a site built house.
A lot of people think Arizona has lots of wide open spaces available, but a lot of land is Indian reservation or National Forest.

Water can be a big issue out in the sticks.  
We have a water utility in our area, but a neighbor who is a prepper wanted a well since the water table was supposed to be less than 200 feet down.
He has a 1000 foot deep hole and still has not struck water.

Do you know if he did the "witch" for water?

My wife witched our well. The first attempt where the well company tried hit a lava tube and snapped off an $8k drill tip. Wife did her thing, marked the spot, and in 2 days they got down the 725 feet into yummy coconino water.

To the OP, water is going to be a huge issue if you want to be in more rural areas with land and privacy. We bought 6 acres in NE AZ. Being that we are at about 6700 ft, it does get cold, and as I type this we are getting some snow. I think you might find there will have to be some concessions made, either with the size town you prefer, or weather. I'm not big on the blowing snow, but living in this area with privacy, like minded people, and beautiful land, it is a more than fair trade off.

Yucca?

From what the OP has described so far, I think the Sierra Vista area would be a little populated especially if he thought Prescott was too big.  St. David might be a good fit and there is always Tombstone.